Two new Great Crested Grebe chicks have appeared on the Serpentine from a nest in an unknown place. Their father was carrying them, and their mother was hunting along the edge to find small fish for them.
The two already on the Serpentine are now considerably larger.
The Coots nesting on the wire basket at the bridge may have lost their chicks, but they are undaunted and carrying on with their breeding attempt. They were maintaining the nest.
The Mute Swans with six cygnets were feeding in the algae on the Long water, which was a relief for the swans on the Serpentine ...
... but a disaster for the Egyptian Geese from the Italian Garden, as the killer swan has murdered their four goslings. The parents were mooching about disconsolately on the pavement.
Egyptians, still not completely accustomed to the northern seasons, don't all moult at the same time like the larger geese do. This one on the Serpentine has already shed its flight feathers and the new ones are starting to grow out.
The Greylags who come to the park to moult include this off-white one. It's quite small and I think it's a leucistic wild goose rather than an escaped domestic one.
A lot of Sand Martins were flying over the Round Pond. Seemingly it was only Sand Martins today, with the House Martins, Swifts and Swallows off elsewhere.
The male Little Owl was in the horse chestnut tree, looking cross because people had been photographing and filming him for some time. I try to keep my visits short to avoid annoying him and always thank him politely for his cooperation.
The intrusive Stock Doves were by his hole in the end of the branch. But they didn't go in and I am fairly sure that they are being kept out because the female is nesting there.
A young Carrion Crow begged and was fed by a parent at the foot of the Henry Moore sculpture.
A young Starling looked expectant on a table at the Lido restaurant.
On the railings near the Buck Hill shelter a Starling loudly scolded a Magpie on the ground below. Starlings nest in the shelter, so they have reason to be defensive.
A Great Tit fledgling waited a little way along the railings for its parents to turn up with some food. I gave the pair pine nuts, which resulted in a headlong chase through the bushes as the young ones tried to be first.
A Song Thrush collected insects on the lawn near the Italian Garden. This is probably the one I've filmed several times singing in a holly tree across the path ...
... where a male Greenfinch was twittering.
Ahmet Amerikali got a good picture of a Reed Warbler in the small reed bed by the bridge, a tricky place to get a shot ...
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... and a Robin carrying a caterpillar on the railings.
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The injured young Grey Heron is still at large and has become very wary. We are going to have a concerted effort to catch it tomorrow.
If you can be arsed.......
ReplyDeleteYes, I can. And I have been patiently answering queries from people who could have found out the answers for themselves with a couple of minutes of web search. But I am not an information service. Please remember that compiling this blog takes up as much of my day as a full-time job but seven days a week instead of five, and I've been doing it every day for over twelve years.
DeleteIt's good to be reminded of that periodically. We may tend to take all this effort and work for granted, and when all is said and done it's a labour of love, and the only thing we can do is at least be grateful for it.
DeleteTinúviel
Both male and female Peregrines flying and calling around the tower in the morning and evening. I have never seen this behaviour but was finally able to see the massive size disparity between male and female. Apparently, there are four eggs on the tower.
ReplyDeleteTheodore
I wonder who found that out. Somebody must have access to the deserted tower. Do we have a bird-loving security man here? Anyway, wonderful news. And it seems to point to the Cromwell Road pair being the same as the Knightsbridge Barracks pair, as these have been absent for some time. Perhaps later when the young are fledged we'll see the family on the barracks again, an attractive site if they don't have to nest as pigeons are thronged below.
DeleteI agree, they seem to be the same pair. They were discovered by a local resident and the contractors apparently.
DeleteI was going to say - keep an ear open - their recent behaviour suggests they may be further along.
ReplyDeleteAnd we are trying to guess their behaviour from 300 ft below. It's like a fish trying to find Princess Kate.
DeleteFrom a long way further off than that, in my case. But like the paparazzi, a one develops a bit of familiarity with one's quarry after years of determined stalking.
ReplyDeleteYes. With a 300 ft tower you have to stand at least 450 feet away from them diagonally, and from that angle you can't see much.
DeleteBut my suggestion to Theodore was to listen.
DeleteIf there are chicks they should be making a terrible racket. But seeing them may be impossible till they're fledged.
DeleteI will endeavour to listen for chicks. Yesterday the two adults were screaming and flying around the tower a lot.
DeleteTheodore
Crossing my fingers for tomorrow. It seems a Heron will get in hot water every six months or so.
ReplyDeleteThe Grebe mother was fishing so close to the edge! What must have been that, two, three metres away?
Tinúviel
The lake has a submerged sloping concrete apron around the edge, and there is a slight drop at its lower border where it meets the lake floor. Small fish congregate here, and the grebe knows about that. You often see them going along the edge in this way.
DeleteI can't believe how rude people can be in this blog, and posting as anonymous as well. Shame a block button cannot be used. Awful behaviour.
ReplyDeleteYou should see some of the blogs I comment on. One develops a rhinoceros hide.
DeleteI have noticed some trolling here recently and it's probably coming from the same person. As I say shame they cannot be blocked.
ReplyDeleteYou can't block individuals. You can moderate comments, but that means a delay before they come through, not to mention the extra job of approving them.
DeleteIgnoring till they get bored and then go away is the best policy.
DeleteTinúviel
And I can retrospectively delete comments. There is occasional spam, but mostly this arrives randomly on old posts so no one sees it.
Delete