Monday 2 January 2017

Both the Little Owls in the oak tree near the Albert Memorial appeared at different times. The female looked down from the hole in the morning ...


... and the male came out on a branch in the afternoon.


The male owl in the tree near the Henry Moore was out too, but two people were photographing him and making him nervous, and this was the closest I could get before he went into his hole.


There were two flocks of Long-Tailed Tits at the edge of the lake. This one was near the Italian Garden.


One of the Nuthatches in the leaf yard posed obligingly in the sunshine on a log ...


... and a Coal Tit stood as tall as it could, which isn't very.


A pair of Rose-Ringed Parakeets preened each other affectionately in a hole in one of the little plane trees near the boathouses, which they must be using as a winter shelter.


The usual inhabitants of these holes are Starlings, and there may be a battle in the spring when these feel like nesting. One was bathing furiously in the water underneath.


The Moorhen family in the Italian Garden are now all completely adult in appearance. They were amusing themselves by climbing around on a patch of reeds and irises.


The dominant Mute Swan at the east end of the Serpentine was having fun in his own way, by bullying the subordinate swans.


A Gadwall was looking quietly elegant in the low sunlight ...


... which was also bringing out the full iridescence of the head of one of the dark Mallards ...


... and the shining red eye of a Great Crested Grebe.

5 comments:

  1. You have again managed to capture a lovely series of images in dramatic lighting. Very fun to see!

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    1. On days like this the light does the work for you.

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  2. Thank you for the identification of the dark mallard - I had seen it and wondered what it was!

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  3. I just love the gorgeous detail of the Great Crested Grebe's shiny red eye. Perfectly captured by the camera.

    If any fashion editor worth their salt saw this picture, or that of the perfectly elegant Gadwall, they ought to name them best dressed birds of the year, on account of their savvy mix of neutrals and bright colours.
    I'm joking... but only slightly.

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  4. Lovely stuff! Not been able to find the Owl trees yet but did see the nuthatch and treecreepers out in full force yesterday which was nice.

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