Saturday 11 July 2015

The Reed Warbler family near the bridge are still very visible in their reed bed and the surrounding trees. Here one of the young ones perched on a bramble, skilfully avoiding the thorns.


There are still five Mallard ducklings on the Round Pond. When I was taking this picture there were no big gulls on the pond, just relatively harmless Black-Headed Gulls.


The female Mute Swan was cruising around the Long Water with her single cygnet.


The male was standing on the little island in a menacing attitude, ready to repel some Canada Geese who wanted to occupy this hotly contested little territory.

Every time the Coots in the nest next to the Italian Garden build up their nest with fresh twigs and grass they carefully pick out the yellow plastic boomerang and put it on top of the new material, to show off their prized ornament to the best advantage.


After a few days' absence the male Little Owl was back in his nest tree.


Late we saw the female higher up in the same tree, but as usual she fled into her hole while we were still some way off.

After yesterday's bold predation the Carrion Crows were having to make do with more ordinary fare. This one had found a bread stick, a dry snack that had to be dunked in the Serpentine.


Near the Dell restaurant, this one was pulling the last shreds of meat off one of the pigeon-killing Lesser Black-Backed Gull's discarded victims.


This pigeon at the Round Pond was luckier. It was wearing a green plastic ring which I photographed from several angles so that I could read the number, wondering why anyone would bother to ring a Feral Pigeon.


It said 'PLEASE PHONE 07909 795064.' So I did, and found that I was talking to a London organisation called Pigeon Rescue, and that the bird had been rescued when injured, restored to health and released -- some time ago, to judge by the heavy wear on the ring and the fact that a metal ring on its right leg had fallen off. The web site of these admirable people is at http://helpwildlife.co.uk/p0593/. They always try to save birds, rather than just putting them down as some organisations do. So now you know what to do if you find a pigeon in distress.

This butterfly is a Comma, and I had a prettier picture of its upper side on 28 June. But its under side is also interesting, as it shows how the species got its odd name. There is a small yellow mark like a comma on the underside of each hind wing, clearly visible here.

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