It was a mostly grey day with occasional drizzle, and very little was happening. Apologies for a dull blog post today.
The most interesting moment was being able to film a Great Spotted Woodpecker drumming in the Dell. They avoid concussion by having a shock absorber for their brain, and also have reinforced eyelids to stop their eyes from popping out.
Song Thrushes are singing at full blast all over the park, I've never heard so many. This one was in a tree just to the west of the leaf yard which has been a favourite singing post for some years, probably for a family succession of thrushes.
A female Magpie by the Steiner bench fluttered her wings and called to her mate. She was checking that he would bring her food when she was on the nest.
It was business as usual in the Rose Garden, with visits by the male Chaffinch ...
... the Coal Tit pair ...
... several Blue Tits ...
... and the pair of Robins.
This is a third Robin a short way off, unaccustomed to being fed and looking suspicious, while the stare of the previous one is expectant.
The Wren near the Buck Hill shelter is getting quite used to being photographed.
Everyone takes pictures of the young heron fishing near the bridge and some people feed it, so it's always hopeful.
The three teenagers in the east nest looked as goofy as ever.
A pair of Great Crested Grebes rested peacefully side by side on the Serpentine.
The Coots flanking the entrance to the Mute Swans' nesting island, and the swan herself, have no interest in each other. But the pair do have an unmistakable air of nightclub bouncers.
A swan made a short flight across the Serpentine for no apparent reason. It seems that, despite the considerable effort of taking off, they enjoy flying for its own sake.
The trio of the Canada x Greylag Goose hybrid, its pure Canada mate, and the spare hybrid were together at the Triangle.
The Canada pair on the Long Water were cruising around in the drizzle with nowhere to go.
A pair of Shovellers revolved together under the fsllen poplar north of the Vista.
For some days there has been a solitary and slightly tatty Gadwall drake on the edge of the Serpentine. People were worried that he was ill or injured. But he is walking around and can fly, and when I gave him some sunflower seeds he ate them with gusto.
'Courtship feeding' is a flawed expression, since it mostly occurs in order that females receive a greater share of food to provide for egg creation, and also that they need not venture far from the nest when close to laying. Jim
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't dream of using it. But I suppose that male Magpies must actually bring food to their nesting mates, or there would be no point in the performance.
DeleteHe doesn't associate with the rest of the ducks? I wonder what's happened.
ReplyDeleteI vehemently disagree about this post being dull. Nothing that shows a Song Thrush singing and discloses the existence of reinforced eyelids can ever be dull.
Tinúviel
Gadwalls do tend to stay in pairs, and they have a more even sex ratio than most ducks, at least as we see them in the park. But there willo always be some surplus drakes. Sometimes they hang around pairs or small groups, sometimes theyt stay alone.
DeleteCor, female Magpies get really bossy this time of the year don’t they!
ReplyDeleteSean
Always, not just now.
DeleteI wonder if swans fly for exercise after all better to practice when you don't need to - then not be able to when you have to.
ReplyDeleteI doubt that a swan would look ahead in that way, but an instinctive drive may achieve the same result.
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