It was a great relief to see the Little Owl at the Round Pond back in her proper place after the scare with the intruding squirrel. This is the first time I've seen her this year.
A Blackbird looked for worms under the clump of climbing roses in the Rose Garden. Not finding any ...
... he flew into the shadows under a big California bay tree and got one immediately.
A Jackdaw just across the path applied for a peanut ...
... and a Jay landed in a winter-flowering cherry in the shrubbery ...
... while a flock of Long-Tailed Tits passed overhead.
Two more Jays waited at Mount Gate ...
... along with several Blue Tits ...
... and a Coal Tit.
The blue rubber non-slip matting on the Lido jetty the Lido gets bird droppings stuck in the grooves, which attracts insects so you often see a Pied Wagtail hunting here.
The solitary Grey Wagtail made a very brief visit, and I didn't get a picture.
The female Peregrine was on the tower by herself.
The Grey Heron with the red bill was back standing on the absurdly small nest on the island, which I think must have been built by a Magpie. There is no sign of its mate from last year, and I fear it's been bereaved. It should be able to find a new mate: there are quite a few unattached herons in the park.
The second pigeon-eating Lesser Black-Backed Gull seemed to be staring vacantly over the lake from the Triangle car park. This was just a ploy, as it was certainly waiting for one of the surrounding pigeons to forget it was there and wander into grabbing range. It doesn't have the fine techniques of the famous pigeon eater, but its skills are improving and it's getting a victim every few days.
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A young Herring Gull snatched a bit of pizza crust from it's parent's beak. I was surprised that the adult tolerated this insolent behaviour months after the young one was supposed to be fending for itself.
A young Cormorant stretched its wings on the small fallen poplar by Peter Pan.
There are only two pairs of Great Crested Grebes on the Serpentine, plus one young one at the east end. This male in his fine new plumage occupies the west end of the Serpentine. He was resting under the bridge.
A skein of Greylag Geese passed noisily overhead.
A dogwood bush in the Dell is in blossom.
A party of volunteers cut back the reeds under the Italian Garden. The Royal Parks are very lucky to have these energetic people doing heavy work for nothing.
Hi Ralph,
ReplyDeletelovely seeing you earlier today. In terms of the heron population in the park, there are many young herons which could be too immature to breed yet? There is the very old Fossil heron how we call him ( Henry Moore statue ) and Benny who is a larger older male with pale beak and strange eyes. The two are often waiting for food together but they are only tolerating one another because of their age. Benny never has any mate .
Jenna
Quite possibly. Perhaps we'll get some unattached herons from Regent's Park later in the year. They seem to fly in and out whenever they feel like it, and I've sometimes seen one passing over Oxford Street above Selfridges. Apparently herons begin breeding at the age of two or three.
DeleteI suspect Fossil is a very low ranking heron now although I have been him bully another heron not long ago. He also has a toe missing ( always been like this since in the park ).
ReplyDeleteBenny still looks healthy and fit but he comes across as too nice for a heron. He never is aggressive. Let's hope no more storms once the babies hatch as that could take the nests down eventually.
Three fully grown young herons and their parents can weigh well over 15 pounds, plus the considerable weight of the nest. I've seen a nest fall down under the weight of its population, and the young ones died because their parents will only feed them in the nest.
DeleteKeep an eye out, please Ralph. We had quite a stormy autumn/winter and so we would have to get the babies to a rehabber. I don't think the Swan Sanctuary deals with heron babies. Or maybe they do?
ReplyDeleteJenna
Good to see the Little Owl back!
ReplyDeleteNice Blackbird shot. Around here I'm mainly encountering them in the wilder places, such as my Sunday patch & which may be mainly wintering birds, whereas they seem to have largely disappeared from the suburban gardens & municipal parks. Used to be an everyday bird!
I have a pair of Blackbirds in a garden near my living room window. In summer the male starts up at 4am, most pleasing to hear.
DeleteNot necessarily for everyone! Great to see the Royal Parks saving money with voluntary labour :-)
DeleteYes, I talked to an Australian nurse living in Bayswater who complained, 'Every morning I get woken up by this bloody bird making a horrible noise.' Turned out it was a Blackbird singing.
DeleteI'm envious Ralph. They used to breed in my garden every year until a couple of years back.
ReplyDelete