There was a Little Grebe on the Long Water again, a most welcome return after several months of absence. They had all left after tons of white slurry were dumped in the lake in a bungled attempt to keep down the growth of algae, which made the water opaque for a week, not good for a diving bird.

In contrast, the Little Grebes in Regent's Park, where they don't mess around with the water, have had a good year and two broods of chicks.

There is a dense, stinking growth of toxic blue-green algae at the outflow of the Serpentine. Evidently yesterday's outbreak in the Dell came from here, but the original outbreak went unnoticed because the wind had carried it to an invisible corner. Now that the wind is in the west it has collected at the edge of the weir, along with a dead roach and the usual human debris.

The Coots whose new nest on the ramp was to the right of this picture have wisely abandoned the site. But a few yards away another pair of Great Crested Grebes have joined the current rush for late nest building. Since their nest is on the edge of a reed bed, it has a good chance of staying free of algae.

When I come into the park in the morning, I am usually greeted by a pair of Jays who expect to be given a peanut each. Here one of them sits in a lime tree waiting for the expected treat.