Monday 28 October 2019

The Little Owl near the Henry Moore sculpture came out for a short time, but quickly retreated into her hole when some workmen started cutting up the tarmac path, offending her sensitive ears.


The Coal Tit at the bridge perched in the pink-leafed bush where I hoped she would go.


A close-up of a Starling waiting to raid a table at the Dell restaurant.


Carrion Crows industriously unload rubbish bins in the hope of finding something edible. The park is now replacing the bins with newer ones with closed tops, but the crows can still get in through the slots in the sides.


The flower beds in the Rose Garden are being replanted with winter flowers. Magpies take advantage of the freshly turned earth to look for worms and larvae.


At the Lido restaurant, the resident Grey Heron is getting bolder by the day. 'Oh look, a table.'


'Let's see what there is.'


'What, no cake?'


'At least there's a cup of mayonnaise.'


'Aargh, I can't get it out with my beak. Oh well, away it goes. Better luck next time.'


The lonely Shoveller drake on the Long Water has been joined by four other Shovellers.


A good close-up by David Element of a drake scratching.


A chocolate brown Mallard drake on the Serpentine. Like all the extra dark Mallards, he has a white bib, an expansion of the narrow white neck ring of a normal Mallard.


A dramatic picture by Ahmet Amerikali of an Egyptian Goose about to splash down.


The moored power boats make a wonderful adventure playground for young Moorhens to practise their climbing.


Virginia got a fine photograph of a Cormorant uttering a hoarse call at Peter Pan.

7 comments:

  1. Ralph, just wanted to share a rather strange birding experience that happened to me yesterday evening. I went to Wembley Stadium to watch the American Football game which started at 5pm with approx 80,000 spectators. To my amazement I looked on the pitch to see a snipe piking at the turf. The poor bird was completely freaked out and flew up into the stands and hit itself against a wall. A couple of minuts later it seemed to recover and then flew over the pitch again and crashed into some netting used to catch the ball behind one of the goals. Luckily a kind hearted and steward saw what had happened and came to rescue the bird. Last I saw was the snipe being carried out of the stadium. I am still trying to figure out how the snipe got into the stadium. Was it attacted by the lights or the grass on the pitch? Wembley is a massive stadium and I didn't think that a snipe would fly so high as to be able to clear the stands and find it's way onto the pitch. Any idea and have you ever heard of anything like this before? Thanks, Ed

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. Very odd, and I have never heard of anything like that before (the famous eagle owl that stopped the Finland-Belgium match actually lived in the stadium). I think the snipe must have been dazzled by the lights and stunned by the noise.

      Delete
    2. Thanks. Sorry to bring such an obtuse story to your wonderful blog.

      Delete
    3. I think I remember hearing in the news some years ago that a lapwing landed on a British or Northern European stadium. Sorry I cannot be more specific. A Spanish soccer player saved a small bird during the last World Cup in Russia:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvPbzK1mN-U

      And of course there is always this:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYsA9ehRb2I

      Delete
    4. It looks as if the Raven is admiring its reflection in the lens.

      Delete
  2. Silly Heron. At least its misadventures made for a very entertaining series of pictures. Bravo!

    The picture of the Coal Tit, and the close up of the Starling! I should never say, this is it, this is as splendid as it gets, this cannot get any better, because it always does.

    LoLing at the thought of Park management's delusion that they can outsmart a Crow bent on destruction of public property.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The more I have to do with crows, the more I realise that they can outsmart us at every turn.

      Delete