Little Owl shouted down by a Chaffinch

The female Little Owl at the Serpentine Gallery called from the sweet chestnut tree where she nests, but was almost drowned out by the insistent male Chaffinch right next to me shouting for me to throw him a pine nut.

The male Little Owl at the Round Pond was in this usual lime tree. This time he seemed perfectly calm about being photographed -- and so he should, as I've been doing it for three years.

The songbirds will be falling silent soon, so let's make the most of the Song Thrush in his favourite holly tree near the statue of Peter Pan.

A Blue Tit chased a Coal Tit off a twig at Mount Gate and preened.

That was my familiar Coal Tit, but it soon recovered from the shock and came back twice for pine nuts.

A Great Tit alternately basked in the sunshine and preened. The warmth brings parasites to the surface which can then be picked off by preening.

It was taking a short break from feeding the fledglings which were frantically chasing their parents.

One of the young Grey Herons at the island was stalking along the edge of the lake looking for fish lurking under the edge of the concrete border. It already knows that this is a good place.

Yesterday Ahmet Amerikali saw a Red Kite over the bridge.

These are now occasional visitors to central London but don't seem to be moving in permanently as some people expected. One reason for that must be that they are harassed by Carrion Crows, and indeed a crow was chasing this one.

Ahmet also found a Great Crested Grebe with two chicks near the Lido. I looked for this and couldn't find it. I have no idea where the nest is either.

I didn't pay any attention to the Coots at the Italian Garden today, but fortunately Duncan Campbell did and sent me two pictures. The pair in the northeast pool, not content with their five growing chicks, have more eggs in the second nest they built on the edge of the fountain. This is not at all a good place as it will be impossible to warm the eggs enough to incubate them, and the Coots seem to have realised this and weren't trying to sit on them.

Duncan also saw that the Coots nesting on the Mute Swans' nesting island have two chicks.

Tom was at Rainham Marshes, where he found a male Bearded Tit ...

... and a Cream Spot Tiger Moth, an insect I have never seen.

But I did find a Silver Y moth in the long grass near the Round Pond, displaying the marking that gives it its name.

In the Rose Garden a Buff-Tailed Bumblebee moved from one foxglove bell to another.

Two more pictures from Duncan: a Large Red Damselfly in the Italian Garden ...

... and an Ashy Mining Bee.

One of the foxes in the Dell looked out of the undergrowth.