Cygnet calls

The hybrid cygnet was following its mother 4GIQ on the Serpentine while the father turned over the remaining eggs -- though it seems most unlikely now that any of these will hatch. Note at 7 seconds the call the cygnet makes, a small version of its father's hoot and quite different from the peeping of a Mute cygnet.

I'm putting up this video of the Mute Swans on the Serpentine with five cygnets to show the high-pitched peeping sound the cygnets make, quite different from the hoot of the hybrid cygnet at the other end of the lake.

Jenna photographed both parents on the nest raft this morning inspecting the eggs in a worried way. The Black Swan insists on sitting on them for a while in the inceasingly vain hope that they will hatch.

Another picture from this morning taken by Jorgen: the original mate of 4GIQ came over to look at the cygnet. He didn't seem to be jealous or hostile.

The three Canada goslings were preening at the Vista, showing their developing flight feathers emerging in their blue wrappings.

David Lacey took this picture of the silliest nest of the year, made by a Moorhen in a pedalo. Even the Coots don't behave as foolishly as this.

The three latest Grey Heron chicks could be seen together in the nest at the east end of the island.

One of the young herons from last year walked carefully along a fallen tree at Peter Pan.

An interesting picture sent by Theodore: a young Jay. Although Jays must be breeding in the park I've never seen one younger than an independent teenager, or for that matter a young Jackdaw. But young Carrion Crows and Magpies are often seen.

A teenage Magpie at Mount Gate was already expecting to be given a peanut, which it successfully opened.

The male Little Owl at the Serpentine Gallery was in the chestnut tree.

This male Blackbird is often seen in a holly tree by Magazine Gate.

A young Great Tit looked out from a tree by the Buck Hill shelter. They're still depending on their parents for food.

We haven't been seeing so much of the Robins at Mount Gate, but today the female came out on the fence to take some pine nuts.

The herbaceous borders in the Rose Garen are empty now while the summer plantings are being organised, so there are fewer insects than usual. A patch of salvia among the roses attracted Buff-Tailed Bumblebees.

The area between the Dell and the Rose Garden has a lot of exotic trees including several monkeypuzzles. The largest one has put out an impressive array of cones. It's a male tree and these are pollen cones.

There is also this unusual little tree, a Yew Plum Pine, Podophyllus macrocarpus, native to Japan and eastern China. This is no more than a sapling, and it can grow to 60 feet tall.

It has this peculiar name because its little cones develop into purplish-red fruits that are eaten by birds. It's worth keeping an eye on it to see what happens.

A new pair of Chaffinches

There were two pairs of Chaffinches in the Flower Walk: the old familiar pair and these younger ones, All were expecting pine nuts.

One of the Coal Tit pair at the Serpentine Gallery came to my hand again. The other one still hasn't dared to.

The male Little Owl was in the chestnut tree, which has plenty of leaves now so he doesn't need to seek cover in the lime next to it.

A young Magpie at the northwest corner of the bridge pestered a parent to feed it while an angry Wren scolded both of them.

There was another Wren a short way along the path shouting at another Magpie.

A Wood Pigeon reached down for fruit in a bird cherry tree near the Italian Garden.

One of the Reed Warblers here was singing from an unusual place, the top of  holly tree.

Another appeared for a moment in the reed bed by the Diana fountain, and I got one hasty shot before it vanished into the reeds.

The three latest Grey Heron chicks in the nest at the east end of the island shuffled and flapped while waiting for their parents to return.

Sad to say, the strong winds yesterday have destroyed the Great Crested Grebes' nest on the chain at the island. The nest was on the lee side of the island and  would have survived if the people at the boat hire had not tied a boat to the chain, depsite being asked not to. The female grebe consoled her mate by giving him a small fish -- not the other way round as you might suppose.

The male Black Swan was turning over the remaining eggs on the nest basket while his Mute mate took their single cygnet for a ride on the water. It's been three days since this cygnet hatched, and it doen't look as if the other eggs will hatch now. Thanks to Duncan Campbell for this video.

The cygnet, on its first day on the water, was already picking up midges and larvae.

The swans with five cygnets were at the Lido. Let's hope they don't go any closer to the Black Swan.

Another swan flew up the Serpentine.

The Canada Geese with three goslings were feeding on the grass at the Vista.

A female Black-Tailed Skimmer dragonfly perched on a Chilean rhubarb leaf in the Dell.

A Buff-Tailed Bumblebee gathered pollen on a red-hot poker flower in the Rose Garden.

Still only one hybrid cygnet

So far the Mute Swan 4GIQ mated to the Black Swan has hatched just one hybrid cygnet. It emerged two days ago, so it may be the only one and the other eggs are infertile. All cygnets, Black, Mute or hybrid, are the same pale grey colour.

A closer look at the cygnet shows a feature that Black cygnets have and Mute ones don't: a line running from its eye to the corner of its bill. This is called a lore and many birds have it, as the area bare of feathers allows it to see straight ahead out of its sideways-facing eyes.

The Black Swan was cruising around the Long Water ...

... but later visited them at the nest. Thanks to Jon Ferguson for this picture.

The swans with five cygnets were at the east end of the Serpentine, a safe distance from the Black Swan who started chasing other swans including 4GIQ's original mate.

A Moorhen rested comfortably in a rowing boat moored at the boat hire platform. Few people hire a rowing boat now, and rowing seems to be a lost art among the general public.

There's still no sign of hatching on the Great Crested Grebes' nest on the chain at the east end of the island.

The Pochard took her three ducklings across the Long Water.

The Gadwall drake from the Huntress fountain in the Rose Garden was wandering around the lawn. I hadn't seen before that he has a ring. I was able to make out some of the numbers, 68158 with the first and last not 100 per cent certain, and will try to read the rest of it.

The Grey Heron chicks were alone in the nest at the east end of the island, though their parents were flying nearby and keeping an eye on them.

A Pied Wagtail hunting along the edge of the Serpentine ran right under my feet. There are two pairs here, one where the male had a sore foot, now recovered, and this is the other male.

A female Great Tit in the Rose Garden seemed to be having a discussion with her mate about what what to do with their noisy fledgling, which can be seen out of focus in the background.

A closer look at the young one.

Another family was milling around in the red-leafed cherry tree near the circular yew hedge.

One of the Coal Tit pair by the Serpentine Gallery has now started coming to my hand, and the other one was having a look but is still hesitant. They watch the confident Great Tits before they decide it's safe.

This Wren is often seen and heard by the circle of benches in the Flower Walk from which a path leads to the Albert Memorial.

A Painted Lady butterfly in a clump of oxeye daisies used its long proboscis to drink from a floret, then coiled it up before flying away.

Hybrid cygnet, and news of the Little Owls

Just as everyone had given up hope, the Mute Swan 4GIQ has hatched  a hybrid cygnet. She was turning the remaining eggs and clearly considered that there may be more on the way.

The father was celebrating in his own way by throwing sticks about.

Shortly after I took these pictures, thunder and a drenching downpour brought the hot spell to an end.

There are a lot of geese as Greylags and Canadas come in to moult their flight feathers in the relative safety of the lake. The rain had cleared the park of people and dogs, and a flock of Canadas took the opportunity to have a good feed on the grass.

The one and only Canada family were at Peter Pan.

The Mandarin family, not seen yesterday, were at the Vista defying a harmless Moorhen that happened to be passing. The ducklings are just as fierce as their mother, and I have seen one of them routing a Coot.

The other main item of news is that there is definitely a pair of Little Owls at the Serpentine Gallery. We've been mainly seeing a male here, and he is shown in yesterday's blog. Over past days I have seen an owl that I thought was female, but I wasn't sure, as males can fluff themselves up and contract their eyebrows and unless you get a really good look you can't be sure. But today I saw two owls fly from one of the old chestnut trees to another and got a picture of an owl that is certainly female looking down gravely from a branch. She went into a hole in the hollow tree, and it seems quite likely that they pair are nesting here, in the tree farther from the gallery, not in the tree with a leaning trunk where the male was raised last year.

A Great Tit brought half a pine nut to a fledgling at the southwest corner of the bridge. He had eaten half of it himself. The young one got plenty, though, as the father came back several times for pine nuts.

A Wren at the northwest corner of the bridge had caught a caddis fly.

A Robin looked out from a branch as one of the innumerable midges flew past.

David Element sent a fine picture of one of the Grey Wagtails, which had caught a damselfly and was about to eat it on a post at the bridge.

The familiar male Pied Wagtail perched on a barrier at the Dell restaurant.

A young Blackbird foraged under the bushes at Mount Gate. There were two here.

We've been having a lot of videos of the Song Thrush singing in the leaf yard, but if it sings like that in full view a few feet away how can anyone resist filming it?

Feral Pigeons relaxed and preened in wood chips in the Flower Walk.

A rain-soaked Carrion Crow perched on the ornamental crown on top of a gas lamp post.

A Great Spotted Woodpecker called from the top of a weeping willow at Fisherman's Keep, not a place where you'd expect to see one. It soon flew away.

The solitary tatty Black-Headed Gull was looking bedraggled after the rain. Gulls don't usually get so wet, and it looks as if its preen gland isn't providing enough oil to keep its feathers in good condition.