The first Grey Heron chicks have hatched in the top nest on the island. The eggs would have been laid in late December, and the chicks are already a few days old, now large enough to be heard clacking their beaks to beg for food. They won't be visible in this high nest until they are large enough to look over the rim. The movement visible in the nest is the other parent.
Jenna filmed this on her phone soon after dawn. A young Herring Gull had caught one of the two remaining Egyptian goslings and swallowed it whole.
Pigeon Eater was on the Dell restaurant roof with his mate.
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All three of the top-ranking Black-Headed Gulls were in place: the Czech gull on his post at the east end of the Serpentine ...
... Blue 2331 a hundred yards along the shore ...
... and the one who owns the landing stage by the Diana fountain.
The Black Swan was obsessively following 4GIQ all over the lake.
The female Pied Wagtail was hunting near the island. Her mate flew by and she took off after him, and they sped away twittering at each other.
A Robin in a bush on Buck Hill ticked crossly at a Magpie and flew down into cover.
The Robin in the Dell was trying to monopolise the pine nuts I had put on the railings ...
... for the pair of Coal Tits, which simply went round it to collect theirs.
The Coal Tits at the southwest corner of the bridge ...
... and the Chaffinch in the Rose Garden are hesitant to pick up their offerings, and it takes some time to get them fed.
Not so this Jay by the bridge ...
... and Jackdaw on the Parade Ground, which swoop down instantly fro their peanuts.
The small flood caused by a defective drain at the Vista attracted a couple of Feral Pigeons. For some reason they enjoy sitting in shallow water, even on cold days.
A fox is often seen coming out to sun itself on a fallen tree opposite Peter Pan.
I wonder if the smaller birds develop a strategy to get at the pine nuts. I'd say Coal Tits know they need to be faster and quicker on the uptake than Great Tits and maybe Robins too.
ReplyDeleteTinúviel
Yes, I really think that the Coal Tits devise strategies. It's amazing to see how well their tiny brains work. We are dealing with rational creatures here.
DeleteHope the Herons do well. These must be amongst the earliest in London, even for a species that is an early nester.
ReplyDeleteGiven the predation levels of young water birds in the park it always amazes me how many Egyptian Geese there are there. Probably just as well there's some natural control on the numbers even if a little gruesome, but that's nature.
The herons started even earlier last season. First sign of a sitting bird was on 21 December 2024. It was about a week later this year. Currently two more nests have sitting birds. The Hyde Park heronry is growing, after having been an occasional thing until two years ago.
DeleteMost of the Egyptians in the park must have flown in from elsewhere. I think they are beginning to follow the plan that the big geese have discovered already: breed in a safe little place elsewhere then, when the young can fly, bring the family into the park.