Two Robins I feed regularly, one in the Rose Garden, the other at Mount Gate, were getting annoyed because I was filming them instead of giving them pine nuts. Of course they got their treat afterwards.
A Coal Tit in the Dell was also impatient ...
... but a sedate Great Tit was content to wait ...
... and so was a Blue Tit at Mount Gate.
Long-Tailed Tits worked their way along the shrubbery at the Triangle.
Starlings chattered on the weathervane of the Lido restaurant as they wait for a chance to swoop down and grab some scraps.
The Grey Wagtail was on the edge of the terrace, where it found a small white larva.
Another search for one of the Cetti's Warblers at the other end of the Lido was unsuccessful. Something small and brown streaked across but it turned out to be a Wren, which I caught just as it vanished into the reeds.
Ahmet found one of the Firecrests in Battersea Park, a bright exception to the rule that warblers are dull brown birds.
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There are several of these smart white, grey and black Feral Pigeons in the park, presumably all related. This one was in the Flower Walk.
A Rose-Ringed Parakeet in the Rose Garden looked up from its demolition of a catalpa pod.
Headbanger was being particularly obnoxious, and bashed me on the head half a dozen times. He knows perfectly well that he won't get a peanut if he does this, but can't resist it.
The Czech Black-Headed Gull had been absent for a week and I was getting slightly worried about him, but today he was back in his usual spot by the Serpentine.
A Grey Heron perched on a boathouse at a discreet distance from four Cormorants.
A interesting picture by Ahmet: a Cormorant had caught a perch far too large for it to swallow. It struggled for a while but was obliged to drop it.
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A Moorhen at the Vista defied the killer Mute Swan, which had come too close to its two chicks.
The odd couple of the Gadwall drake and female Mallard had flown over from the Italian Garden.
There was still a Small White butterfly in the reeds by the Diana fountain.
Oh my God the picture of the Moorhen standing up to the Killer Swan! It's symbolic, something you'd expect to see as a in illustration in a book of fables. How did the face-off go? I hope the Moorhen and its chicks got away unharmed.
ReplyDeleteGood ole' Headbanger. I had been wondering about him.
Tinúviel
The swan bumbled off in a leisurely way, not looking defeated but annoyed by the encounter. When it was retreating the Moorhen trotted back to its family. I'm sure it thought it had won, and maybe it had.
DeleteWith the Heron outnumbered 4 to 1 I would still back him for a good scrap with that dagger beak. I don't think the Herons like the Cormorants takeover of all areas, they show concern of their mob numbers, while they are cool as a cucumber feeling strong in their structure.
ReplyDeleteA Cormorant neck stretch straight upward can help guide a large fish down its gullet head first.
Sean
First time I’ve heard of headbanger, how charming. I immediately went back to read all previous references to him. How does he bash you over the head? Does he use his wings like fighting pigeons? Or his feet like a swooping Australian magpie? Had you been feeding him for a long time before he started?
ReplyDeleteHe swoops over my head and foes a touch-and-go landing, hitting me with his feet. I have to wear a hat in his vicinity to avoid injury. It may be charming in a way, but it's a bloody nuisance.
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