It started to drizzle in mid-morning and soon turned to steady rain. A view down the Italian Garden from the loggia.
The female Little Owl at the Round Pond could be dimly seen sheltering in the back entrance to the nest tree.
The male owl at the Serpentine Gallery has a sheltered spot under an overhanging branch where he often goes in wet weather.
Feral Pigeons sheltered under the cornice of the bridge.
A Song Thrush at Peter Pan was happy, since rain brings up worms.
A Great Tit, tattered by feeding chicks, kept dry in a bush while it ate a pine nut.
A young Robin came boldly out on to the wet path near the Henry Moore sculpture.
The rival Grey Herons were both on the lawn, just far enough apart to prevent a fight from breaking out.
The pigeon-eating Lesser Black-Backed Gull had a go at catching a pigeon in flight ...
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... but the agile pigeon easily dodged him.
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The Great Crested Grebe on the nest opposite Peter Pan had his wings slightly raised. This might be a sign that an egg has hatched and there is a chick on his back, or he might just have fluffed himself up a bit on a chilly day.
Coot chicks picked up leaves and algae in the Italian Garden. These are two of the newer brood of four. The seven older ones are still in good order.
Feathers can be preened more effectively if slightly damp. Young Egyptian Geese at the east end of the Serpentine took advantage of the drizzle.
Two more bees from Duncan Campbell, obviously photographed on a brighter day. This is a male Willughby's Leafcutter Bee, Megachile willughbiella.
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And Duncan thinks that the one on the right here is a Large Yellow-Faced Bee, Hylaeus signatus. Large or not, it's dwarfed by a mighty Buff-Tailed Bumblebee.
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Does the killer gull often have a go at pigeons in flight these days, is it always from a high perch and does it ever succeed? Was it having difficulty hunting on the ground as a consequence of the weather? Jim
ReplyDeleteYes, I've seen him chasing pigeons in the air, especially in earlier years before he perfected the technique of grabbing them on the edge of the lake when they were washing. He started by standing on the edge of the roof and trying to drop on passing pigeons. It was only occasionally successful. Today there were no pigeons on the ground in the immediate area, I suppose partly because the ground was swimming in water.
DeleteI think that's the first time Pigeon Killer has tried to hunt a pigeon mid-air? It would have been incredible had he succeeded, considering pigeons can evade even peregrines.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the tattier birds are more prone to feeling the cold and the wet weather by virtue of the poor state of their feathers.
It's also relatively cool in here - I have read that some news outlets in GB were loudly claiming that Seville had hit 60ºC. the past week (!). 36ºC here today. Piece of cake, for Spain's dog days.
Tinúviel
*the first time that I have seen, i mean.
DeleteI got an indifferent picture several years ago of Pigeon Killer chasing a pigeon directly and, suprisingly, almost catching up. Sorry, can't find it in a quick search. He must have approached in a dive to get near the swift pigeon.
DeleteThe media reports of weather here have moved from mere exaggeration to outright lies.
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