Friday 7 April 2017

The Mute Swans' nest near the bridge has at least one egg in it, which could be seen when the female -- at the back in this picture -- stood up for a moment.


There is a new brood of seven Egyptian goslings on the Long Water. The parents are likely to be the pair that had a brood here earlier this year -- not the famously hopeless pair, but a more competent one that struggled for days against the hungry crows and gulls. This picture, obstructed by the fence below the Henry Moore sculpture, is the only one I could get.


Blondie gave us an anxious moment when she was seen alone on the landing stage of Bluebird Boats.


But when I went up the other side of the lake later, there she was with all her family. The young ones must have been under the landing stage.

The Great Crested Grebes nesting on the island now have at least one egg. Here one of the parents is turning it over to keep it evenly warmed.


A pair of Coots have spent several days on a foolishly sited nest on the edge of the lake at the terrace of the Lido restaurant. Every time a powerboat goes past and raises a wake, bits fall off the nest and have to be put back.


The Moorhens in the Dell haven't thought of nesting yest, and were taking it easy in the sunshine.


A Wood Pigeon was bathing at the top of the waterfall.


The mob of Carrion Crows at the Dell restaurant seems to be here to stay. They were getting most of some bread that someone was trying to give the swans.


In the Rose Garden, two rival male Blackbirds were chivvying each other in a tree.


One of them gave up the struggle and flew to the next tree, where he posed in some blossom.


In the same tree, a Great Tit was probing the flowers for insects.


You usually think that when a tit is picking at flowers of buds it is looking for bugs. But this Blue Tit was definitely eating bits of bud.


A Long-Tailed tit had finished the main structure of its nest and was collecting feathers to line it.  A nest contains literally thousands of feathers.


One of the pair of Goldcrests in the trees at the northwest corner of the bridge came out for a moment.


A Little Owl looked out of the oak near the Albert Memorial.


The Little Owl near the leaf yard, whom I missed yesterday, made up for it by coming out for several minutes while I had my video camera set up on a tripod.

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for another good little film of the owl. Excellent sound, somehow seems to represent how loud is must be for creatures with good hearing.

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    1. I've got a new and better microphone. But it's a directional 'shotgun' microphone, and that sound is what was coming in at the side, where it's relatively insensitive. The park really is a noisy place, especially during the school holidays.

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