Still 8 black swans in St. James's Park, London

A week after my last visit to St. James's Park, on 24th November I returned to check out the 8 black swans - the 3 original residents of the park and the 5 newcomers that had flown in from Hyde Park.

At the Trafalgar Square end of the park and, near the rocks where the park's pelicans hang out, I saw a pair of the park's original black swans.  Here they are the bread on either side of a greylag goose filling, though one of them is rather inconveniently showing it's backside.  The trees in the park have now gone into winter mode, so that there are millions of leaves on the paths and, indeed, everywhere in the park.  By the way, there is a cormorant sitting up on the tree branches on the right-hand side of the photograph below.

As I walked along the path by the lake, I saw the park's black swan that is always hanging around on it's own.  This time it was with a white mute swan - friend or foe, I do not know!  Both were fishing around in the water for food.

Then at the Buckingham Palace end of the lake, I saw the five newcomers.  They certainly have chosen the up-market end of the park to make their home!  The two black swans on the bank seem to have formed a romantic relationship as I saw them earlier on doing synchronised bobbing of heads, etc.  The other three were practising their synchronised swimming line-up!

I am now fairly obsessed by these swans and hope to post more photos of them, and other wildlife, at a later date.

Eight black swans in St. James's Park, London

St. James's Park in London is one of two parks that are within walking distance of the area where I live and I go there quite often for a walk round the lake with my camera.  In the past, I have seen three black swans that live there - one that is usually on it's own and a pair that swim around together.

Recently I read on Ralph's blog about the birds in Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens that their lone black swan, which left the park a little while ago due probably to harassment by the dominant mute swans on the lake, had returned and then had been newly joined by a group of four younger black swans.  Determined to see them I headed off at the beginning of last week to Hyde Park but, having walked all round the Serpentine and the Long Water in Kensington Gardens, there was no sign of them.  That evening I read on Ralph's blog that they had moved on and had been seen on the lake in St. James's Park.

Last Friday I went to St. James's Park to see if they were still there.  I firstly headed off round the lake towards the Trafalgar Square end of the park, which I where I saw the park's resident pair of black swans.  They were in the middle of the lake and quite a distance from me.

When I walked round the other side of this part of the lake, I saw the park's resident black swan that is always on it's own.  It was standing at the edge of the lake, amongst a plethora of coots.

This is a close-up of it's face and neck.  What a beautiful red eye it has.

I had not really gone out early enough, arriving at the park at about 3 p.m., and I stopped to take photographs of lots of other birds that I saw on the lake.  So, when I arrived at the Buckingham Palace end of the lake, the light was beginning to fade.  As luck would have it, that was where the five Hyde Park black swans were hanging out!

Here is a photograph of two of the visiting black swans - or maybe they are going to stay, which would be great as it is much easier for me to get to St. James's Park to see them.

Below is a close-up photograph of one of the visitors, I think!

It began to get a bit confusing as the five Hyde Park swans were joined by the three St. James's Park residents.  I did not manage to get a photograph of all eight together as the resident black swans kept mainly to the periphery of the group.  In the photograph below the five Hyde Parkers are in the foreground and a lone St. James's black swan is right at the back by the greenery on the island that is in the centre of the lake.

Some of the park's resident mute swans were swimming around with the black swans.

The park's resident lone black swan swam off into the distance and looked back at the group of newcomers from underneath the branches of a overhanging willow.

Then the black swan decided to swim back to the group of other black swans - but all the while keeping it's distance.

The group of visitors swam backwards and forwards around this part of the lake.

At one point they looked as though they were going to move on.

However, they came back again.  In this photograph there are six black swans and two mute swans, plus several black-headed gulls.

Here again there are six black swans, two mute swans and also a juvenile cygnet.  The photos are not that great as it was now after 4 p.m. and the light was quickly disappearing.  The black swans are too dark and the white swans are too light - but never mind!

In this last photograph there are seven black swans - the eighth having refused to join in the photo shoot and having disappeared round the corner past the willow on the left-hand side!  Meanie!!!

I intend to go back to St. James's Park again at an earlier time and, hopefully, when the sun is shining.  I only hope that all eight black swans will make their presence known and agree to be photographed together!

Assorted wild and captive birds in Barnes Wetland Centre

 Oops!  I have not written on my blog for some time now, which is very remiss of me.  I am a retired silver-surfer and have no excuse, but I just don't know where the time goes.  Anyway, I am going to try and write more often, if I can.

Towards the end of June I spent several hours in the Barnes Wetland Centre, which is a great place to see both wild and captive birds.

The photograph below was taken from a hide in the wild-side area of the centre.  One of the birders in the hide very kindly pointed out to me that there was a Tern in the water in front of a group of gulls.  If he hadn't told me, I must admit that I would not have known it was there!  I took a few photographs and this is the best I could do.  The Tern was a long way away and I need a camera with a stronger lens - which I just cannot afford - so I am doing the best I can with the equipment I have got.  I would not even have this if my brother-in-law had not kindly donated it to me - for which I am extremely grateful and thus sparking an interest in taking photographs of birds!!

This photograph of a mute swan standing in the water and flapping it's wings was taken from a different hide.  The swan was also a long way away, but being a much bigger bird it can be seen more clearly.

Again in the distance, there was a Lapwing amongst the wild flowers in the grass.

It was the time of year when the water lilies were in flower in the ponds that line the paths around the Centre.

After leaving the wild part of the Wetland Centre, I went to look at the captive birds.  They are all very well looked after and are of great interest to all the school children that visit.

This is an Emperor Goose that is sitting on the wild-flower-filled grass.

Here are some Goldeneye ducks - one male at the front of the photograph and maybe two females with a juvenile at the back of the photo.

A couple of Smews were swimming around in one of the lagoons - black and white male and a female with a brown head.

In the same area there was a majestic male American Wood Duck with the most amazing plumage.  What a handsome bird!

There was also a female Tufted Duck with three tiny fluffy brown babies.

This is one of the two Bewick Swans that live in the Centre.  It is fairly young as the original pair of Bewick Swans that I have seen previously at the Barnes Wetland Centre were taken away some time ago and replaced with juveniles.

Here are a couple of unfriendly (or shy) White-necked cranes.  They obviously did not want me to take photographs of them and insisted on standing with their backs to the camera.

These are a group of Eider Ducks.  There is one male together with some females and juveniles.

I liked this Magpie Goose.  He/she has great orange legs!

This Fulvous Whistling Duck looks as though it is in prison, but I am on the same side of the bars!!

I had the amazing experience of seeing this leucistic young Mandarin duck.  It was standing on top of a wooden fence and I managed to slowly and quietly edge myself nearer and nearer while trying to take photographs of it.  Eventually I got too near and it flew off down to the water's edge of the lagoon.

It joined this normal-coloured Mandarin, who was not that happy to see it and soon shooed it off!

Not far away, at the edge of another part of the lagoon, were a couple of scruffy-looking Mandarin drakes.  They had started to go into eclipse and had lost part of their magnificent set of feathers.  These two really looked as though they needed a decent hairdresser!

In comparison, this common-or-garden boring Mallard drake still looks great with his green iridescent head, which is glowing in the late afternoon sunshine.  

Standing at the edge of the water were a Tufted Duck couple.  There are several little fluffy babies crouching on the ground near mum.

After several hours walking round the Wetlands, on my way out of the Centre, I came across this Brent Goose.  I had to look this one up in my Collins Bird Guide - I am still learning to differentiate between all the different types of birds that I photograph on my walks.

Well, that was another amazing day in the Barnes Wetland Centre and extremely good exercise.  I hope to visit there again before Christmas and will be interested to see what the difference in wildlife is there between summer and winter.