The joy of chocolate cake

A hot Saturday with a loud pop concert in the park is not a good time for seeing birds, but at least the male Little Owl came out in the lime tree in the afternoon.

A Carrion Crow had won a bit of chocolate cake from the café by the Italian Garden. It was with its family, but didn't offer to share it.

A young Lesser Black-Backed Gull near the Dell restaurant, smaller and darker than a Herring Gull. They have started breeding in the town now so we shall be seeing more of them soon, though they will have a lot of catching up to do with the alarmingly successful Herring Gull colony in Paddington.

The Grey Heron at the Italian Garden, fishing under the marble fountain, shook out its feathers. This is just a momentary comfort movement. The heron hasn't discovered the fishing method of the African Black Heron, which brings its open wings forward over its head to create a sunshade, luring fish into what they think are safe shadows.

The male Great Crested Grebe at the island was sitting comfortably on the newly rebuilt nest. Perhaps his mate has already started laying eggs. Grebes start sitting as soon as the first egg is laid, so the chick hatch over several days. This doesn't matter, as they can be fed on the nest by the grebe that is taking its turn on the water.

The pair that tried to nest on a dead tree on the Long Water were evicted by Coots and haven't found another site yet.

The Coot nesting on the raft at the Triangle was in that odd position again, standing over the eggs with wings lowered. Maybe it thinks they're getting overheated and need shading.

A Moorhen cooled off under the spray from the marble fountain.

The new boss Mute Swan 4HDW's mate 4DTT brought her two cygnets to the Vista to do a bit of begging.

The other mother 4DVT was by the Diana fountain landing stage, taking her three cygnets quite close to the Black Swan. He didn't react. He has lost his mojo since the cygnet died ...

... but not his appetite.  When he saw me he hurried over for some sunflower hearts.

A teenage Egyptian Goose kept cool with a splashy wash in the Serpentine. A final flap showed well developed flight feathers.

The six teenagers by the boathouse were resting on the shore with their parents.

A female Emperor dragonfly laid eggs on the algae under the Italian Garden.

A male was sparring with a Brown Hawker. This isn't a good picture, but I was pleased to get anything as Brown Hawkers are almost impossible to photograph, dashing around non-stop.

It's not just dragonflies that find the railing spikes a perfect place to perch. A Greenbottle fly was sunning itself on one near Peter Pan.

The sea lavender in the Rose Garden attracted a Small White butterfly ...

... and a tattered old Painted Lady.