A Blackbird near the Dell collected worms to feed his nestlings. The method is to haul up several worms and leave them, then go round quickly and gather them all up before they can dig in again.
The bramble patch under the hawthorn tree near Henry Moore, where I photographed a Chiffchaff yesterday, also has a Long-Tailed Tits' nest in it.
A Blue Tit in a copper beech behind the Albert Memorial is now a regular customer for pine nuts.
The male Little Owl at the Round Pond was out on one of his favourite branches in a horse chestnut.
The Peregrine pair were on the tower sharing a pigeon. It's unusual to see them so close together. This is a very distant shot from across the lake. By the time I got round to the other side they had finished eating and flown away.
A young Cormorant on the gravel strip on the Long Water played with a stick, practising nesting.
The Grey Heron in the third nest preened serenely, ignoring the clacking of the two chicks out of sight at the back. These only get fed when a parent flies in with a crop full of freshly caught fish.
The unfortunate Coots at the north corner of the Vista have had their nest hijacked by a heron for a second time.
A Coot was building a nest in quite deep water near the Serpentine outflow. This enormous labour is always in vain, since even a moderately strong west wind will create waves large enough to wash it away. But Coots never give up.
The Black Swan was here, this time on his own.
A pair of Canadas on the Long Water gravel strip have three goslings. I don't think this is the pair that started nesting on the tern raft, as there you can dimly see through the grubby plastic what look like abandoned eggs.
The three big goose pairs were together at the Lido.
There is some confusion with the Greylags. Yesterday the two pairs had three and two goslings, but today one of the adults which had two chased a gosling away and it joined the three with the other parents. It looks as if accidental swaps have happened in two directions.
The three Canada goslings grazed at the bottom of the grassy bank. Their mother fed with them while the gander kept a lookout.
The 11 Egyptian goslings on the south side of the Serpentine clustered around their mother.
The pair on the other side of the lake were looking after their seven.
When a dog came past the gander went over to yell at it. It was a fairly safe bit of bravado as the dog was on a lead and already being pulled back. But no doubt it impressed his mate.
You don't usually think of holly as a flowering tree, but it's insect-pollinated and has attractive little pink-tinged blossoms.
I never knew holly was so pretty.
ReplyDeleteI always wonder how Blackbirds detect worms. I imagine they can sense vibrations with their feet?
Who's going to tell that Heron to move over. Too much, even for Coots.
Tinúviel
Possibly they can also smell worms. Anyway, they home in on them unerringly although they are hidden underground, and dig them up and haul them out.
DeleteShame about the Coots nest being stolen by the Heron. I always thought they liked their nests high up in the trees and off ground level.
ReplyDeleteNot a nest.
Delete