Although it was a sunny day there was quite a strong wind, and I didn't expect to see a Little Owl. But as I went past the old sweet chestnut tree near the Serpentine there was a pair of Stock Doves flapping around and suddenly something brown shot out of a hole and attacked them. It was the female owl. She stood above the hole looking pleased with herself.
The young male Chaffinch who has appeared recently in Kensington Gardens ...
... was with the female in the Flower Walk and there was no sign of the old male. He is in a sad state with feet badly infected with the virus, and she may have deserted him in favour of a healthy young mate.
A Goldfinch looked down from a treetop behind the Queen's Temple ...
... and a Long-Tailed Tit perched on a lower twig.
A Great Tit waited in a camellia bush in the Flower Walk.
A Wren in the bushes by the Henry Moore sculpture stayed still for long enough to have its picture taken.
The Robins on the north edge of the Rose Garden are not yet on such intimate terms as the pair in the middle which I photographed yesterday. They are still at the stage where one stays in a bush ...
... while the other is on the ground, but at least they're tolerating each other.
Two Grey Herons uncomfortably close together on the gravel strip in the Long Water eyed each other with suspicion.
The three young herons from the second nest on the island were wandering around on the shore. They are still returning to the nest to be fed, but will soon have to find their own food.
There are now two Coot nests at the Mute Swans' nesting island on the Long Water.
A pair of swans were courting on the edge of the Serpentine.
The Egyptian Goose and her last gosling rested on the shore.
The Mandarins cruised past the island.
A Gadwall pair cropped algae at the edge. It's pleasing that we now seem to we now have a permanent population of these quiet well behaved ducks.
Two irresponsible dog owners arrived at the Vista at the same time and encouraged eight dogs to go into the water, scaring away the dark Mallard drake who had been feeding at the edge.
Sunshine showed off the carp in the Dell stream. They have a small world, bounded at one end by the small waterfall and at the other end by the grille where the stream goes underground on its way to the Thames just upstream of Chelsea Bridge.
Athena came back to life and took possession of her avatar, if only briefly, and you were fortunate enough to see it!
ReplyDeleteTinúviel
She really does look divine in that picture. You have to remind yourself how tiny this august creature is.
DeleteDid you say anything to the dog owners?
ReplyDeleteNo. They live on Planet Dog where everything their pet does is lovely and funny, and any remonstration rouses them to screaming fury.
Delete