Monday 6 February 2023

Six herons on the island

A Wood Pigeon ate the buds of a tree beginning to blossom beside the Serpentine.


A Redwing found a worm in a patch of churned-up earth on the Parade Ground. On sunny days they prefer hunting in the shade, perhaps because the worms prefer that too.


A Blue Tit near the Speke obelisk looked out shyly from under a bramble leaf ...


... and decided for the first time to come to my hand for a pine nut. Pleased with that, it came back for a second one.


The Coal Tit at the Albert Memorial needs no prompting.


The Herring Gulls are mostly back in their smart breeding plumage with shining white heads.


An unruly mob of Black-Headed Gulls jostled for places on a boathouse roof.


The Grey Herons were back on their nest, at least for the time being.


The second pair explored two old nests at the west end of the island.


Another was asleep in a treetop.


A sixth heron contemplated all this from a tree on the shore.


The Little Grebe in the Italian Garden was diving with the Tufted Ducks.


The highly aggressive Mute Swan on the Serpentine advanced menacingly, had a faceoff with another male, and chased a harmless female away.


Egyptian Geese displayed and mated under the spray from the large marble fountain at the edge of the Italian Garden.


The restoration of the cupola on the Serpentine Gallery is finished and the scaffolding has been taken down.


I am fond of this odd-looking Edwardian building. Before it became a gallery showing incomprehensible art it was the Cake House, where you could go and have a proper tea with a sticky bun.

2 comments:

  1. There is something deeply symbolic of the times we are living in in the exchange of a proper Cake House for a gallery showing incomprehensible art.
    Well done on getting a new Blue Tit customer!
    Tinúviel

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    Replies
    1. There was far more art in the cakes than in all the exhibitions they have ever had.

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