Monday 27 January 2020

Redwings were foraging in the grass on on the south side of the Serpentine, and later moved to the Parade Ground, where the remains of the Winter Wasteland are almost gone. There should be more tomorrow when there are fewer people in the enclosure.


There was also a single Mistle Thrush ...


... and a mixed flock of Long-Tailed Tits and other small birds passed through the trees, ignoring events on the ground.


The shy Coal Tit in the leaf yard hopped anxiously from branch to branch, not even daring to come down to take food from the railings.


A pair of Rose-Ringed Parakeets canoodled in a tree beside the Serpentine.


Others clung to the Henry Moore sculpture, pecking at the holes in the stone. The thing is made of travertine, not as hard as proper marble, and they must be getting grit off it, or perhaps just tiny fragments of calcium carbonate to top up their mineral intake.


Mark Williams got a good shot of a pair of Starlings, looking fine even on a dark day ...


... but the prize picture today is by Tom, who got a Turtle Dove in Valentines Park in Ilford. These beautiful birds are now vanishingly rare in Britain.


A man feeding Carrion Crows at the Vista was overwhelmed by a mob of bumptious birds.


Five of the Grey Heron nests on the island were occupied. A pair displayed.


Two male Mute Swans circled each other aggressively on the Serpentine.


The problem with the fountains in the Italian Garden is serious, and the whole system is having to be unblocked.


It seems to be a task for heroes.


One of the resident Moorhens watched the workmen suspciously. It's not necessary to drain the pools completely, so everything should be all right, but the job is expected to take a week.

4 comments:

  1. Oh my God, a Turtle Dove! They are so, so rare nowadays. Congratulations to Tom!

    Glad to see the unblocking company follows the principles of my preferred philosopher: Arnold Schwarzenegger.

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    1. Perhaps, though, 'I'll be back' is not the best slogan for a repair company.

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  2. As well as being rare in the UK, it's amazing to get a Turtle Dove in winter. Not unprecedented- I remember seeing a wintering bird with Collared Doves by a farm at Rye Harbour about 30 years ago. Still pretty unusual.

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    1. This one was also with a little group of Collared Doves.

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