Little owlet by day

One of the Little owlets at the Round Pond looked down curiously from the top of a horse chestnut.

Its father kept an eye on it, and me, from his usual branch in the small lime.

A Song Thrush rather surprisingly allowed itself to be photographed beside the path near the Italian Garden.

A tiny Wren made an enormously loud fuss in the Dell.

A young Great Tit chased its parents through a bush near the bridge.

Two interesting pictures from Ahmet Amerikali: a Whitethroat near the leaf yard ...

... and what's this? I think it's a female Blackcap that has got very tattered from nesting and feeding chicks.

A Carrion Crow on the edge of the Serpentine had a quick dip and preen and flew off, still wringing wet. I'm always surprised they can take off in this state.

The Great Crested Grebes on the Long Water are nesting again, this time with a better prospect of success as there are plenty of small fish to feed the chicks. They saluted each other ceremoniously.

The nest at the Diana fountain reed bed needed maintenance. I hope this sloppy mess doesn't disintegrate before its time.

The Coots nesting at the outflow, whose three chicks were seized by the pigeon-eating gull yesterday, were back in business. I couldn't see whether there are any more chicks or eggs ready to hatch. I admire their indomitable spirit, but the gull is always waiting.

One of the Mute cygnets on the Long Water chased a Mallard ...

... then the cygnet itself was chased by a Coot ...

... which brought a furious response from its mother. The Coot fled to a safe distance.

More bee plants are coming into flower. A Common Carder fed on an Acanthus in the Dell ...

... and a Honeybee on an Eryngium at the back of the Lido.

This Honeybee is on a flower which PlantNet tells me is an Apple Geranium, Pelargonium odoratissimum. I squeezed a leaf, expecting it to smell of apple. It had a strong and pleasant fragrance, but nothing like the scent of an apple.