Thursday 2 April 2020

A third pair of Egyptian Geese on the Serpentine have bred, but they are already down to one surviving gosling.


The gander is the only male Egyptian in the park to have a white head, as far as I know. This is much commoner among females and may be sex-linked.

The second pair still have one gosling, which the mother was wisely keeping next to a tree ...


... because a Lesser Black-Backed Gull was giving it a calculating look.


A visit to the Round Pond to check on the Black Swan found a Mandarin drake having a vigorous wash behind it.


A pair of Mute Swans collected reeds to make a nest in a hopelessly exposed place on a public path near the Lido.


A Tufted drake displayed to a female, stretching his neck to make him look tall and impressive.


This female Pochard near the bridge is our only permanent resident after all the migrants have left. Even the drake I photographed a few days ago has now gone.


A Great Crested Grebe on the Long Water was calling. He had lost sight of his mate, and they become anxious if separated for more than a few minutes.


A new Coot nest is going up in a fallen poplar at Peter Pan. This is only a day's work and already a sturdy structure is taking shape.


But the incompetent Coots' nest in the dead willow has not advanced at all in the past week.

A Carrion Crow drank from the little pool at the top of the Dell waterfall.


I gave two Jackdaws peanuts, but a Grey Squirrel kept muscling in. Even a Feral Pigeon can displace these rather timid birds.


This Robin at the back of the Lido is now coming out to take pine nuts thrown on to the path.


A Blackbird stared suspiciously from a post.


A Long-Tailed Tit paused on a bramble beside the Long Water.


A Wren came out of a border in the Rose Garden ...


... and a fox ran across the lawn to go to ground in the shrubbery around the Cavalry Memorial.

2 comments:

  1. Poor goslings. It's like a killing field.

    The Grebe looks distressed, poor thing. I hope he found his mater soon, and they had one of their lovely displays to calm him.

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    Replies
    1. The number of big gulls on the lake is much reduced at the moment, but it only takes one gull to eat all the goslings and ducklings the waterfowl can hatch. Part of the trouble is that there is little cover around the Serpentine. St James's Park has more trees and bushes around the lake and the survival rate is higher.

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