On another dark grey day, unexpectedly one of the Little Owls near the Henry Moore sculpture came out. I think this is the female of the pair, but it's hard to tell when they're fluffed up against the cold.

And as it was beginning to get dark the male owl near the Albert Memorial came out, waiting for the people to go away so he could start hunting.

There was also a Peregrine looking down from the barracks tower.

Another of the Grey Heron nests on the island was occupied. The pair in this nest produced at least one chick in the summer, but it didn't survive.

Three Cormorants stood on the Mute Swans' nesting island in the Long Water.

A Coot has built a nest in the reeds under the parapet of the Italian Garden. It's a full size nest and has taken a lot of work, but surely they aren't serious about breeding yet.

A handful of sunflower hearts thrown into the water attracted a crowd of Tufted Ducks. The seeds sink, so a diving duck is well placed to collect them.

A Pochard drake cruised past the Vista.

A pair of Jackdaws on the Henry Moore exchanged glances as a pair of Egyptian Geese went through their loud display.

At first sight it looked is if this Carrion Crow was building a nest in a tree near the Dell. But the nest is made of dead leaves, not twigs, and in fact it's a Grey Squirrels' drey, a winter shelter. The crow was picking it to pieces to look for insects.

A crow bathed in the Serpentine ...

... and strode ashore to dry itself.

A Wren chattered on a twig beside the Long Water.

I had just filled the bird feeder in the Rose Garden when a Chaffinch came out to pick up spilt seeds. This is his winter plumage, but he's still quite colourful.

It's not unusual for Song Thrushes to sing in midwinter, but it was surprising to hear one on a dark wet day.

The rain brought out Blackbirds to look for worms coming up. This male was in the Flower Walk ...

... and there were several females in the Rose Garden.

A Dunnock waited for seeds to drop from the feeder.

A Coal Tit perched on a rose bush.

A Blue Tit near the bridge waited on a holly twig.

One of the Grey Herons on the island is now actively building up last year's nest with fresh twigs.

Two Cormorants on the Long Water happened to surface together. They eyed each other with hostility.

One lost its nerve and crash-dived.

A Great Crested Grebe fished at the outflow of the Serpentine.

A young Moorhen in the Italian Garden pulled off a strip of iris leaf and ate it. It's remarkable what Moorhens can eat.

The usual Red-Crested Pochard here provided a bit of colour on a dull day.

The dominant Mute Swan on the west end of the Serpentine was under the bridge with his mate, and for some reason lost patience with her.

Egyptian Geese flew all over Kensington Gardens making a noisy display on dead trees.

It was a beautiful Christmas Day, and the park was crowded. As chattering families enjoyed a sunny walk beside the Serpentine, a Starling shining in the sunlight added to the chatter.

Two Robins and a pair of Blackbirds hopped around within a few feet of each other on the path in the Flower Walk, while a Song Thrush looked down from a high branch.

A gang of Magpies in a treetop plotted some audacious exploit.

A Great Tit looked out from one of the yew trees near the bridge, which oddly seems to have little brown flowers on it.

I looked for the Little Owl near the Albert Memorial, only to find that he was facing stiff competition. The tree contained a Stock Dove ...

... a Carrion Crow ...

... and a Rose-Ringed Parakeet irritably chewing a broken branch ...

... and, worst of all, there was a squirrel actually in the hole.

The same Grey Heron as on previous days was standing in the nest on the island.

Young gulls often dive to try to find sticks or stones to play with, though of course they may find a fish or something else edible. This young Herring Gull on the Serpentine dived repeatedly without finding anything, though it did take a moment to scare off a Coot.

A Cormorant stared haughtily from a post at Peter Pan.

A Tufted drake stood on a chain next to the bridge.

A visit to the Round Pond to check on the Black Swan ...

... unexpectedly discovered Blondie the Egyptian Goose, who hardly ever leaves her favourite spot beside the Serpentine. I think she was forced away by the sheer number of people on the edge of the lake. Well, she can use her immaculately preened wings to fly back when things quieten down.

A very happy Christmas to all readers!

Three Grey Herons were wandering around the island and one of them stood in a nest left over from last year. They are definitely showing signs of wanting to nest, something that these herons do very early though it's an on-off business at first.

A Coot was also building a nest, on the dead willow tree at the north end of the Long Water. Unlike the herons, it's probably not going to have a serious attempt at breeding for some time. Coots' instinct to build nests is unstoppable and apt to kick in at any time.

There were signs of the beginning of another Coot nest in the fallen willow at the bridge, but a Mallard had taken over the site.

The fighting instinct of Coots is also unstoppable. Two were at it again oin the Serpentine ...

... and another was having a faceoff with a Moorhen at Peter Pan. Unsurprisingly, the Moorhen backed down.

The dominant male Mute Swan at the west end of the Serpentine was showing off to keep the other swans subdued.

A little fleet of Tufted drakes idled beside the landing stage.

A Herring Gull ate a crayfish on the island.

Young gulls love to play with toys -- stones, feathers, bits of wood, anything they can find. This is a useful training for adult life as a snatcher of food: they learn how different things fall and how to grab them.

After yesterday's picture of one of our two Polish Black-Headed Gulls, here's the other one, T4UN, which was on a post at Peter Pan. It was ringed as a chick on 14 June 2012 at Truskaw by Adam Olszewski and Stanisław Matuszewski.

A Carrion Crow found a mysterious object in the grass and played with it for a minute. It didn't seem to be edible.

A Jackdaw trotted up the path to get a peanut.

The male Little Owl near the Albert Memorial appeared at the front of the hole in the afternoon.

You may notice that this picture is closer and sharper than previous ones of the owl in this place. This was my first day with a new camera, a mirrorless Sony α7R IV with a Sony FE 200--600mm zoom lens. I haven't by any means got the hang of it yet, but it's already producing impressive results.

A sunny morning started a Song Thrush singing tentatively in the Flower Walk, but it only tried a few quiet phrases before stopping.

The big feeder in the leaf yard has been filled up, which happens only very irregularly when the park management remembers. It attracted two Coal Tits. Here is one waiting in the nearby yew tree for a pause in the arrivals of larger birds.

A Blue Tit preferred to come to my hand for a pine nut.

A Wren perched on a branch near the bridge.

A Pied Wagtail worked over the roofs of both small boathouses, looking for insects in the crevices.

The Starlings' holes in the two small plane trees here have been almost entirely taken over by invasive Rose-Ringed Parakeets.

A Starling shone in the sunlight on the railings of the Lido restaurant.

This is one of Tom's speciality of ground-level shots, making a Robin look tall and imposing.

The male Little Owl near the Henry Moore sculpture came out on a branch.

The rain-soaked park is by no means dried up. Some Feral Pigeons took advantage of a large puddle.

A Young Herring Gull diving to find playthings in the Serpentine came over to scare a Coot, but the Coot got the last laugh.

The Polish Black-Headed Gull with plastic ring T8YT was in a crowd of other gulls near the bridge. It's the younger of our two Polish visitors, only 18 months old and first seen last year.

Two Mute Swans flew up the Serpentine.