After yesterday, when the weather was foul and there was plenty to see, today the weather was pleasant but there was very little action. Even the reliable Little Owl was very hard to photograph, with the sun shining into the camera in the only place where you could get a view of her.
In the Rose Garden a Jackdaw ate a peanut on a branch. This hadn't come from me: unfortunately the garden has now attracted crowds from the Wasteland feeding the Rose-Ringed Parakeets, which is having a bad effect on the small birds that live here.
Still, there were the usual Robins in the shrubbery.
A flock of Blue Tits ranged along the edge of the lake near the bridge.
A Carrion Crow perched on the stump where I photographed the Oyster Mushrooms yesterday, making a sinister shot.
More were hard at work where plants have been cut down beside the stream in the Dell. There must be insects and worms in here, but it's not clear why this place was so attractive. One found a couple of red berries, but that seemed to be pure chance.
There was no one on the terrace of the Lido restaurant, so a Pied Wagtail had the run of the place and checked under the tables and chairs for insects attracted by spilt food.
The young Grey Heron that is usually here found no one to feed it, and went off to fish beside the reed bed to the east of the Lido. But someone arrived to feed the killer swan's family, disturbing the peace it needed. It soon flew off to find a quieter spot.
One of the herons on the island was pulling off twigs to add to the newly occupied nest.
All the white Feral Pigeons in the park have some black tail feathers, and this has been the case for years. There must be some local families with consistent colour patterns. It's strange, for example, that the predominant colouring among London pigeons is not the original light grey Rock Dove pattern but the darker grey speckled pattern that pigeon fanciers call Blue Chequer.
Black-Headed Gulls hovered and bickered by the Dell restaurant where someone was throwing bits of bread in the air.
A Common Gull soared gracefully over them ...
... and the pigeon-eating Lesser Black-Backed Gull stood below, looking around for his next victim.
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The dark Great Crested Grebe, which seemed to have a mate a few days ago, was by itself again. Unusually for a grebe, it's been alone for some time.
The pair of Moorhens in the Dell preened on their favourite rock.
Gadwalls at the Vista upended to find food, and Shovellers revolved. A Coot swam past and added a third technique, diving to the bottom.
(This was near the rose garden- forgot to mention that)
ReplyDeleteThanks. It's certainly very pale, but from those pictures I'd say its eyes are the usual amber colour, so it would be leucistic, not an actual albino. Whole flocks of pure white pigeons are found in some places where they have been deliberately bred, but not here where the birds are left to behave naturally.
ReplyDeleteThat's a cool fact- wonder if this one came from one of those flocks?
ReplyDeleteOne such place is the Maria Luisa park in Seville, which Tinúviel told me about.
ReplyDeleteRalph's memory is once again as perfect as always. Andalusians of old were typically very fond of pigeons and doves. They would breed them not to race them but for posture, line and beauty. There used to be beauty contests, as it were, for pigeons. The pigeons and doves currently inhabiting the Parque de María Luisa and Plaza de América in Seville are descendants from the races best loved by pigeon fancies. They are indeed very distinctive, as they are mostly pure white and have small heads and sleek bodies:
ReplyDeletehttps://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Sevilla_-_Plaza_de_América_-_20070519-21.jpg
Thank you for supplying these fascinating historical details.
ReplyDelete