Sunday 5 June 2022

A soggy owl

The Tawny Owl had carelessly come out during a shower and got wet. He looked annoyed.


A Great Tit prised a larva out of an ornamental keystone on the bridge ...


... while a young one in the bushes waited to be fed.


The young Blackcaps were waiting for food near the Henry Moore sculpture.


A Robin looked out of the next tree. It's also a parent ...


... but this young Robin belongs to a different family in the Flower Walk.


Two young Starlings in the Rose Garden were learning to find their own food. Their parents would still be feeding them at this age but were out of sight. They had a slight squabble.


It's always fun watching Starlings washing frantically.


One of the Starlings at the Buck Hill shelter had found a piece of bread, and was throwing it about violently ...


... to break off a piece small enough to eat.


A Dunnock sang on the other side of the path.


Usually photographing Reed Warblers demands patience and speed, but the pair near the Italian Garden just climb up a reed stem and look at you while you take pictures at your leisure.


The Coots' nest near the Dell restaurant is now a tall tower of twigs, feathers and miscellaneous debris. Getting in and out will be a challenge for the chicks.


Two Coots corralled the cygnets at the Vista so that they could grab the food that was being given to them. They didn't go so far as to peck the cygnets, which would have brought a terrible revenge from their parents.


It was a cold day for June with a sharp breeze. Egyptian goslings sheltered under their mother.


Another familiar bird returning to the Serpentine to moult: the last survivor of the Canada x Greylag Goose hybrids. It has been visiting the park for many years.


A Common Carder Bee in the Rose Garden whizzed from one lavender flower to another, while a larger Buff-Tailed Bumblebee carefully worked over the flower before going on to the next one.

8 comments:

  1. Shame the starling only had bread to eat - will be over tomorrow with digestives and sultanas :) Mark

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    1. I'm sure they'll be all over you. That's the trouble. I like Starlings, but once you start feeding them you are continuously dive-bombed. So I leave it to others.

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    2. Is that type of food good for a bird? Also, Ralph, how does one distinguish a male from a female Tawny owl?

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    3. No, not for any bird.

      Female Tawny Owls are bigger and rounder than males.

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  2. Coots, always dancing on the edge of disaster.

    The young Robin appears to have been eating its vegetables - it has a tiny bit of greenery on its beak,

    I don't think i have seen a soggy owl before. Looks uncomfortable.
    Tinúviel

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    Replies
    1. I think the Robin had been poking around in the plants looking for insects. They are not noted for their enthusiasm when it comes to vegetables.

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  3. Is that not a snail or slug the Great Tit caught? Wondering why a larva would be there. And as always a pleasure to tune in. Jim

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    Replies
    1. Quite possibly. But the picture was taken in very dim light and the original large image is grainy, so you can't see any more than appears here. Also, I think the bird may have taken whatever it is before it moved on to this bit of the stonework. It had been on the bridge for 15 seconds when I got the chance to take the picture.

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