tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post6826877694217851262..comments2024-03-29T01:41:15.713+00:00Comments on Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park birds: Ralph Hancockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11686354797977020917noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post-56344306024471893682017-08-07T21:09:15.787+01:002017-08-07T21:09:15.787+01:00Well, he will have to get used to what wild creatu...Well, he will have to get used to what wild creatures do to each other. The only difference between them and us is that we have slaughterhouses where the killing is done in secret.Ralph Hancockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11686354797977020917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post-83006534672831185112017-08-07T21:07:30.110+01:002017-08-07T21:07:30.110+01:00Thanks. The Amethyst Deceiver is on the new illust...Thanks. The Amethyst Deceiver is on the new illustrated notices showing species that can be seen in the park -- these are very well done. I was wondering why I had never seen one. But if they are greyish when dry, I may have walked past many without recognising them.Ralph Hancockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11686354797977020917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post-88093112544639347422017-08-07T19:09:39.696+01:002017-08-07T19:09:39.696+01:00I overheard one of my colleagues this evening expl...I overheard one of my colleagues this evening explaining to another colleague that he had seen the Pigeon-Killing Lesser Black-backed Gull in action this morning and the image of him killing the pigeon kept coming into his mind all day as it was not behaviour that he had expected at all. Charliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00024117986579013216noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post-48043082931937779712017-08-07T10:43:15.780+01:002017-08-07T10:43:15.780+01:00These look like L. laccata to my amateur eye. The...These look like L. laccata to my amateur eye. The Laccarias, as well as being colour-variable per se, also get darker when damp with dew or rain-water. L. amethystina is an ordinary violet-grey when dry but, when wet, turn a rich and implausible purple. harryghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04184350321693687780noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post-6466471626090873162017-08-04T21:09:25.117+01:002017-08-04T21:09:25.117+01:00Thank you. Looking at pictures of this species on ...Thank you. Looking at pictures of this species on the web, there seems to be a close match.Ralph Hancockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11686354797977020917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post-60070692786802293132017-08-04T21:08:40.359+01:002017-08-04T21:08:40.359+01:00Yes, I was thinking of a cat too. I've seen th...Yes, I was thinking of a cat too. I've seen the gull doing this before, with greater success. It does seem to make the pigeons think he's asleep or at least inactive.Ralph Hancockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11686354797977020917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post-1599187465010357942017-08-04T20:49:28.517+01:002017-08-04T20:49:28.517+01:00It's always tricky to id a mushroom just from ...It's always tricky to id a mushroom just from a photo, but this looks like the Deceiver, Laccaria laccata.<br />MarioAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8278510471239667560.post-45828391486049930872017-08-04T20:25:38.832+01:002017-08-04T20:25:38.832+01:00I thought our notorious pigeon-killing friend was ...I thought our notorious pigeon-killing friend was crouching just like a cat would do before it attacks. It's remarkable how close the bird was to the lady with the striped pants, and how unfazed it was by that.<br /><br />Maturity suits the Black Swan: he looks ever more splendid.TinĂºvielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04794275230697959519noreply@blogger.com