A Song Thrush looked for worms and insects in a patch of dead leaves near the Speke obelisk.
A Chaffinch sang on a twig above.
The non-slip matting on the jetty at the Lido is popular with wagtails. Geese standing on it leave droppings which collect in the grooves, attracting insects for the wagtails to catch.
This female Pied Wagtail caught a midge.
The Carrion Crow I saw three days ago hauling a larva out of a patch of wet mud at the Dell was there again today. It must be a rich source of food, as the crow completely ignored a peanut I gave it.
The Grey Heron that normally stands on the handrail of the steps up to the bridge had been displaced by the constant passage of the Sunday crowds and had retreated to a nearby berberis bush. Its injured eye is now completely recovered and it's no longer blinking constantly.
The two young herons have returned from the Round Pond and were on the gravel strip on the Long Water, inspecting a Mallard and a Tufted Duck.
There was just one Cormorant left in the park, and it was farther along the gravel. This picture was taken through the iron railings on the land side of the strip.
Two remarkable pictures from Virginia, taken from the bridge looking down at the Coots' nest. For some time there have been two male Coots around the female, but until now the female's mate has chased the outsider away. But today the two males cooperated in collecting a twig ...
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... and bringing it to the nest.
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The Mute Swan nesting east of the Lido had a preen and then settled down on her six eggs. She couldn't find a comfortable position, and stood up and turned round before settling again.
The Black Swan seems to have attached itself to another Mute Swan on the Serpentine. I don't think it's his old girlfriend from the Round Pond, as she was retreating when pursued. Eventually he will wear down her resistance with his constant attention.
The eight Egyptian goslings were near the boat hire platform. They eat algae and grass but need extra protein to grow, which they get by catching insects and larvae on the water.
This Egyptian is already moulting at the end of April. They still haven't fully adapted to the northern seasons.
The warm weather brought out plenty of bees. A Common Carder bee -- the first I've seen this year -- worked over a dandelion at the Vista.
A cercis bush in the Rose Garden attracted a Honeybee ...
... and a Buff-Tailed Bumblebee.
The usual Mining Bee preferred a polyanthus.
Wonder if both coots wanted credit for a particularly good twig and neither would let go!
ReplyDeleteYes, that had occurred to me too. But it's a very ordinary twig.
ReplyDeleteCo-operating male Coots? Is that a canonical sign of the Apocalypse?
ReplyDeleteI always marvel at your ability to catch such a tiny, rapid act as a Wagtail swallowing a diminutive midge.
Tinúviel
The Pied Wagtail picture was an accident, like all the pictures of these very quick birds that I've published. You point the camera and take 20 or 30 shots -- my camera is set to slow continuous shooting, 3 pictures a second. Then you go through what you have and hope to have caught a good image. The rest you delete.
DeleteGood to see you have Chaffinches still. Seems to be just a winter visitor around here. Finch numbers generally low but get Goldfinch, Linnet & Greenfinch on my patches.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure your top bee is a Common Carder Bumblebee rather than Hairy-footed Flower Bee.
Thanks for the correction. I wasn't expecting a Common Carder. It was the first one I've seen this year.
DeleteWe have Chaffinches all year round here, and a fair number of them. This one was one of a pair.