Swifts and Sand Martins

A windy day brought the insects down low over the Round Pond, and Swifts and Sand Martins zoomed over the surface in pursuit of them.

A closer view of a Swift ...

... and a Sand Martin.

There didn't seem to be any House Martins, though there were some over the Serpentine from the small colony at the Kuwaiti Embassy in Knightsbridge.

The young Pied Wagtail and its father, feeding on the edge of the Serpentine by the Lido restaurant terrace, had to fly off when a Carrion Crow strolled down the edge.

It was too windy for any Little Owls to show, but a young Carrion Crow could be heard in the nest in the owl tree at the Serpentine Gallery, and a parent perched next to the nest in the drizzle.

It would be good if the young crows grow up soon and leave the nest so that the owls can have a go at breeding.

This Jay on a bench in the Flower Walk is now a regular customer for peanuts, and I hope it will soon be grabbing them from my hand in flight. It nearly did today but sheered off at the last moment.

One of the young Grey Herons was on the edge of the Serpentine by the boat hire platform ...

... and the other was with an adult in a tree by the Long Water.

As you can see, the tree is a Black Poplar. It became uprooted and fell into the lake but still had roots in the ground and has remained alive in a horizontal position. The poplar at the Vista was not so lucky, and when it fell all the roots were detached, so it died. It remains a useful perch for birds but will fall to pieces in a few years.

The Great Crested Grebe chick on the Long Water is now chasing its parents over the lake, though they still remain on the far side and I haven't had the chance of a decent picture.

One of the teenage Coots in the Italian Garden fountains preened by a clump of water lilies.

The Coot nesting on the chain at the bridge was turning over the eggs.

The Black Swan is now completely deserted by his former girlfriend, though he still associates with the Mute Swans on the Serpentine and hoots hopefully at them.

The killer's family on the Long Water were by the upper reed bed, looking misleadingly sweet and innocent.

But I couldn't see any cygnets on the Serpentine at all, and I fear that the killer may have murdered them all, accounting for four in a single day. Later the family moved on to the Serpentine.

Update: Jon Ferguson say that the swans on the Serpentine are carrying their cygnets on their backs to keep them safe. Still great danger, though. It will be hard to see what's going on, so if anyone has any definite news tomorrow please put it in the comments.

Uncomfortably near the killer, the Canada Geese with three goslings stood on either side of their young in a watchful attitude.

The four younger Egyptian goslings are still all right and are now growing quickly.

So are the older four. The two larger ones are now well into their first proper plumage and one of the smaller ones is on the way, but the smallest is lagging behind and shows no sign of changing yet.

A pan over the scene at the bottom of the Parade Ground, where most of the Egyptians are gathered. There are also some Greylags, with more arriving on the lake daily as they arrive to moult their flight feathers in the safety of the lake.

The usual two Canadas were on the raft on the Long Water, which is now disintegrating rapidly. It was built in halves and will probably break up when the last of its frame falls off.