The Grey Herons' nest building on the Serpentine island continues. There were three birds at work, and their nests are getting quite large.

But frosty weather is forecast, and if it comes they may give up as they did last year after an initial frenzy of activity.

The Tawny Owls at least seem committed to their annual schedule. There was no sign of the female, but the male was standing guard in his usual place.

He was restless and kept glancing around, though as a mere human I couldn't see what had alerted him. Tawny Owls can see slightly better than us in low light, but their key sense is their amazing hearing, which allows them to pounce accurately on a mouse in pitch darkness just by listening to the faint rustle it makes moving through the grass.

The four Jackdaws were constantly flying around the area, though they seemed more interested in food than in mobbing the owl. Here is one of them in a rare moment of rest.

There is an exotic tree near Peter Pan bearing the label Ligustrum lucidum 'Excelsum Superbum', and a note of its origin, China. It is a kind of giant privet with variegated leaves. A small branch had fallen off it and someone had thrown this into the lake, where the young Mute Swan was finding it very palatable.

No other birds seemed interested in its tough evergreen leaves. Swans also eat willow leaves, and seem to be the only species that likes them.

The lone Shoveller drake on the Serpentine, who never joins his fellows, was quietly shovelling in the rain.