Sunday 21 September 2014

A Magpie had evicted the Mistle Thrushes from the most heavily laden of the rowan trees on Buck Hill and was enjoying the berries.


In the yew tree near the bridge, a Song Thrush intent on eating berries was holding on tight as the thin twig it was on swayed wildly in the wind.


The female Shoveller now has a shovelling companion, and they were happily making circles round each other under the bushes near Peter Pan. The turbulence of each one's wake brings up little creatures for the other to scoop up.


The eldest of the young Great Crested Grebes -- the one from the west end of the island -- has now grown a neat little black crest.


Two grebe chicks on the Long Water had wandered off and their mother was swimming around calling for them with a fish in her beak.


The seven Mallard ducklings are still keeping close to their mother, and she is watching warily for danger while they sleep on the edge of the Serpentine. You can see why she has been so unusually successful in keeping her whole brood alive.


I made two visits to the Little Owls' tree without seeing either of them and was about to give up when the female owl suddenly appeared behind a Wood Pigeon and stared intently at me for a few seconds before moving to a more private spot.

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