Sunday 13 June 2021

Another hot day. A Magpie sunbathed in the grass.

Grey Herons perched on the small electric boat. The one on the right, panting and with wings extended, was clearly feeling the heat. The other preened imperturbably.

The Black Swan sought the shade of a willow.

The Coot with one chick from the boathouse sat in the scanty shade of the railings.

Even the Rose-Ringed Parakeets, which are Indian and ought to stand the heat well enough, seemed subdued. A Carrion Crow ate the apples that had been put out for them.

The weather never interrupts the love life of Feral Pigeons.

A young Blackcap flitted about in a tree beside the Long Water.

A Chiffchaff perched in a hawthorn.

A young Great Tit gave the camera a serious stare.

One of the Great Crested Grebes nesting at the east end of the island turned over the eggs in the nest to keep them evenly warmed.

A pair of Coots are foolishly making a nest on the chains next to the bridge, right under the posts where the Herring Gulls like to perch.

At the other end of the bridge, the Coots have already lost all their new chicks and are down to the sole survivor from the first brood. There are still some eggs in the nest but I don't think they'll hatch now.

The new Egyptian Goose family on the Long Water grazed on the thick mat of algae brought up by the hot weather.

Egyptian teenagers on the Serpentine raced around and dived.

The eldest two Greylag goslings are now quite large and beginning to get an adult look.

An Emperor Dragonfly rested on an iris leaf in the Italian Garden.

There was such a crowd of Buff-Tailed Bumblebees on the Lamb's Ears flowers in the Rose Garden that it has forced out the Honeybees, which were having to make do with the scantier pollen from a patch of pink Cranesbill.

4 comments:

  1. The young Great Tit is adorably imperious. Such a commanding stare in someone so young.

    I sympethise with the Coots staying in the shade. They are cleverer than many humans

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    1. This human would have liked to stay in the shade too, but he had to go round and get pictures.

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  2. Nice intimate shot of the Feral Pigeons. Glad you got a decent shot of the emperor. Saw my first of these yesterday & saw about 10 in total- a good day for insect spotting after a pretty dire spring!

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    1. Yes, we're still rather low on dragonflies and damselflies. I've only seen three Black-Tailed Skimmers, usually abundant.

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