8th February

Regent’s Park

Not much to report from here

Water Rail: having not been reported for a while, it was good to know that at least one bird is still present.

Firecrest: a very bright crest was seen to disappear into thick cover in area 1 but didn’t re-appear.

Siskin: 20 flew west.

Bushy Park:

Hybrid Aythya: the drake was on the boating pond,

Tawny Owl: the bird showed well in bright sunlight until it got fed up with the constant attention from Jackdaws and parakeets.

Lesser spotted Woodpecker: the female was in the Canal Plantation at 8.10am while the male could be heard calling by Teddington Cricket Club.

Redwings & Fieldfares: birds were again in the same locations as they have been all week.

Siskin: at least 50 in the Canal Plantation.

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Who’s bum is this?

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The Bearded Tits in Hyde have become more mobile and are possibly thinking of leaving soon. For this reason I thought that I would call in on route to a meeting in Hyde Pk.

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On arriving at the reed bed all seemed quiet. A few reed stems started to move but there was no sign of the birds. After close scrutiny I picked them up sitting on the ground at first a little way apart but then side by side, about 6 inches into the reed bed but in a little area bathed in sunlight.

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I was a little surprised that nobody spotted the odd swans out on yesterdays post.

 

Comments

Joe Beale said…
Was it a Yellow-legged swan??
Hi Joe that is the one. In all my years birding it is the first time I have seen a swan like this. I have seen strange bill colourations but not legs. Were all the other swan Bewick's ?
birdman_euston said…
9 Feb:
pr Shelduck, 17 Gadwall, 2♂ Teal, 12 Shoveler, 3 Great Crested Grebe, 2 Sparrowhawk, 19 Goldfinch (Old Golf School Pen, area 39).
Two fearless foxes sauntering across The Holme lawn at 11am. Forsythia, Japanese Cherry etc beginning to flower.
birdman_euston said…
11 Feb:
32 Mandarin - annual removal of shoreline brush apparently has halved the number of a fortnight ago, 2 Shelduck, 27 Gadwall, 24 Shoveler, 74 Red-crested Pochard, 1 Little Grebe, 2 Great Crested Grebe, 478 Black-headed Gull on playing fields at dawn, 19 Common Gull, 18 Fieldfare - 8 on playing fields near Old Golf School Pen a.39 early am & 10 over NW late pm, 1 Pied Wagtail - part of the small wintering population at London Zoo that often feeds on or near The Hub at dawn.
Daffodil, Spicebush and Darwin's Barberry starting to bloom.
Eland said…
Hi Tony,
Nothing different to report. I saw some redwings in the Canal Plantations whilst looking for the woodpecker, I did see a woodpecker in there, it flew into a tree in the distance but couldn't find it for a closer look.
I live adjacent to the park and saw a buzzard flying over from the Fulwell direction towards Bushy, perhaps it likes patrolling the Fulwell golf course for food. Lesser redpolls and blackcaps about and the usual suspects including a heron cloacked under its wings in the snow/sleet, occasionally peeking out to scan the stream below.
Hopefully I will be able to get out into the park tomorrow.
birdman_euston said…
13 Feb:
25 Fieldfare, 14 Redwing both on Hill playing field, area 49 at 10:30; 5 singing Song Thrushes encircling Community Garden a.14 at 07:05.
Eland said…
I found waxwings!! Kings road near bushy park, opposite end of road to bushy.
What a good find. They must be the birds a friend found the other week at the other end of the High Street. Was the much food for them?
Eland said…
They weren't visibly feeding actually, didn't appear to be much for them. They were really approachable without my camera, I was just on my way home and walked right underneath them. I rushed back home and returned camera in hand and they flew to a distant tree as soon as I pointed my camera at them. Eventually they returned so I got some photos, nothing special though, the light was poor.
I will have look tomorrow
Joe Beale said…
Oh, of course... a Whooper Swan too! Overlooked that the first time around :)
birdman_euston said…
15 Feb:
1 Water Rail (area 2), 2 Goldcrest, 5 Coal Tit (singing a.1/9/16/40/42), 1♀ Blackcap (Wildlife Garden a.20 12:35), 21 Song Thrush (19 singing - Park S side at dawn), 37 Chaffinch (thirty on floor near Regent's Canal a.43 10:10), 8 Goldfinch, 2 Siskin (a.31 & 39).
Spoke to someone who photographed a Kestrel yesterday (14 Feb) in N nest box in Wetland Pen a.32.
Most resident passerines now singing except Goldcrest. Great Spotted Woodpeckers drumming a.3 & 36.
Unidentified, fast-moving, erratic, dingy-brown butterfly S past Primrose Hill lookout at noon.
That is a good number of thrushes
Eland said…
Hi Tony, here are the waxwings I saw from Thursday.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/evanlandy/8473885772/in/photostream/lightbox/
birdman_euston said…
I've discovered, Tony, that Song Thrushes are like Dunnocks - inconspicuous unless they're singing! More often than not, they've been absent from my daily tallies this winter - till this month.
Early morning even before it is light is the best time to count the thrushes.