Birds in Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens

On a Friday afternoon towards the end of February the sun was shining, for a change, so my camera decided to drag me out for a walk round the lake in Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens.

It was a lovely day and the first birds that I came across on the path round the Serpentine were lots of pigeons and geese waiting to be fed unsuitable food by a tourist.  Amongst them was this very pretty starling.  In the photo below it is marching along the gravel path.

Here it is staring at the commotion that is going on around it - which was much too boring for a photograph.  I think its feathers are really amazing - especially on such a small bird.

There were lots of black-headed gulls in and around the lake.  Some of them were beginning to get their breeding plumage with their heads turning dark brown.

This one still has a whitish head.

A couple of Greylag geese were having a conversation in the Diana Fountain.  One of them is also enjoying having its feet in the cool water.

On the Serpentine there was an angry mute swan swimming at speed up and down the lake and attacking other swans.

The aggressive swan can just be seen behind the swan with its wings raised, ready to take flight and avoid being pecked on the back-side.  The pair frightened off a coot, which can be seen swimming away at speed.

For a couple of mute swans, love was in the air.  If they were hoping for a private moment, it wasn't going to happen as they were joined by two on-lookers.

Further round the lake I came across a magpie flitting about in a patch of daffodils and looking for food under the dead leaves.

It has got a very interesting face.

I found two strange-looking mallards on the Long Water.  They had brown bodies with white bibs, instead of the usual white bodies.  The sunlight turned the colour on their heads into this amazing iridescent green.

Swimming near them were two mallard drakes with the normal colouring.

This is a large photograph of one of the hybrid mallard drakes.  He is rather handsome!

At the end of the Long Water, on one of the ponds in the Italian Garden, was a female Gadwall.  She looked very pretty in the sunlight.

Her partner, the Gadwall drake, was nearby.  He is a rather handsome duck.

Here the two of them are swimming along together.

On the other side of the Serpentine, near the stored pedalos, a white mallard drake and a normal colour female were lurking around in the still water.

In this photo the drake is trying to hide under the pedalo.  It will never work - especially against the dark water!

Tufted ducks in Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens

 

During the week before Christmas I went for a long walk round the lake in Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens.  It seemed to be a day for Tufted ducks.

The first one I saw was on the Serpentine in Hyde Park - and I think he looks very handsome.

He spent a lot of time diving for food.  Unusually for me, instead of getting a photo of just disturbed water, I actually got a photo of his backside.  I like the fan-tail feathers in the photograph below.

At the other end of the park, in Kensington Gardens, there were several Tufted ducks on one of the ponds in the Italian Garden.  Here is a photograph of a drake.

Here is photograph of two drakes.

Here is a photograph of three drakes.

Now the picture is back down to two drakes.  I love the reflections in the water - almost as though it is on fire!

In this photograph there are three drakes again, with the one on the left-hand side splashing jets of water all over his pals!

On one of the other ponds in the Italian Garden, minding their own business and keeping well away from the boys, were a couple of female Tufted ducks.

Great Crested Grebe and 3 babies hiding under a willow tree

On Sunday afternoon I went for another walk round the lake in Hyde Park and saw lots of interesting water birds on the lake.  More of those later, when I have time to write about them.

One of the main reasons I went there was that I was quite keen to find the Great Crested Grebe and chicks that Ralph Hancock mentioned in his Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park Birds blog.  Thank you, Ralph.  I was not quite sure where they were located and knew that they were hidden by greenery and hard to spot. He was definitely correct about that.

After a few hours walking and taking photographs, I decided to cross the lake by the road bridge and came down the steps on the other side in order to walk along the lake and then out of the park to an underground station.  When I came down the steps, I saw a Great Crested Grebe swimming along in the water.  By the time I focused on it, it was speeding away and, as you can see, the light at that time was not that great.

I took a photo of it and then, on looking around further, realised that it had been visiting the family under the leaves of an over-hanging willow tree.  My vision was impaired by the flowers, leaves and shrubs on the bank - but my luck was in and I had found the family I had been looking for!  It is kind of hard to tell, but there is a little stripey head in the centre left in the photograph below and just to the right of the spiky pink flowers.

I stood there for ages, taking lots of photographs and knowing that my photographic skills are not that great.  I have not got round to having some much needed photography lessons, but will do so one day.  Anyway, the parent kept appearing and disappearing from sight.  In the photo below, one of the youngsters can just be seen in front of the parent.

In this photo, three fluffy babies with striped heads can be seen hiding under the shelter of the overhanging leaves.

The photograph below has been cropped quite a lot so that there is a clearer view of parent and a young Great Crested Grebe.

Sometimes the parent and youngsters swam out from under the tree, but the view of them is still not very clear.

I was very excited to have actually found them and that they were in a position that I could, at least, attempt some photographs of them.

This is a cropped photograph of a youngster that has floated out from under the branches.  I love the fluffy feathers and striped head.

In the below photograph, the parent Great Crested Grebe has swum out from under the willow and a baby is floating in the water just, annoyingly, behind the tall spiked flower on the bank.

After a while, they disappeared completely from sight but I was over-joyed to have found them and to have been able to take some photographs of them.

Swan and new cygnets on Long Water

A couple of days ago I was in Kensington Gardens and looking for the swan's nest that is near the Italian Garden at the end of the Long Water.  It can no longer be seen from the Italian Garden as the thick leaves round the nest hide it from view, so the swan was very wise to choose that area away from lots of prying eyes.  However, it can be seen from the opposite side of the water, looking between the trees and reeds.  The cygnets hatched a few days before my walk and some of them can just be seen in front of the mother swan.

Mute Swan with cygnets on nest

I wandered off and had a sandwich while sitting on a bench near the bridge that divides the Long Water from the Serpentine.  Then I decided to go and have another peek at the swan's nest.  This time mum was taking the cygnets for a swim.

Mute swan pen and cygnets

They swam around for a while.

Mute swan and her six cygnets seen through the reeds

Then it was time to go back to the nest.

Mute swan leading her cygnets back to the nest

 Now then, form an orderly line!

Cygnets climbing back up into the nest

Now the mother swan can settle down again while waiting for her cygnets to get back into the warm under her wing.

Cygnets getting ready to get back under mum's wing

I shall have to try to go back there again soon in order to check on the progress of the cygnets.

One lonely Mandarin chick with mum and dad

A mum Mandarin duck was standing watching her one remaining chick at the edge of the Long Water in Kensington Gardens.

Dad was snoozing on the top of a nearby post.

Sleepy Mandarin drake

The duckling decided to look for something to eat.

Mandarin duckling looking for food

A Magpie flew to the edge of the water.  It was looking very interested in the duckling.

Magpie on the edge of the bank

Mum Mandarin flew up at it and chased it around, so it flew off.  Thank goodness!  Then dad Mandarin woke up.

Beautiful Mandarin drake

The Mandarin duck decided that it was time to make a move.

Mandarin duck in water while duckling is still on dry land

The female started to swim away.  The baby eventually got into the water, but I don't have a photo.

Female Mandarin duck

The male followed behind.  He is so gorgeous!

Mandarin drake with reflection in the water

Water bird identified - Mandarin losing his fine plumage

I was in Kensington Gardens yesterday and saw this beautiful water bird standing on top of a post.  I am relatively new to birding and had not seen one like this before.

Mandarin drake starting to go into eclipse plumage

I asked if anyone could identify it and, thankfully, Ralph from the Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park blog has told me that it is a Mandarin drake that is beginning to lose his fine feathers and going into winter mode.  I am very grateful for the information.

The Mandarin was having a bad hair day.

Mandarin drake with ruffled head feathers

He needed to have a good brush-up and was shaking his head quite violently as he worked hard on his feathers.

Mandarin drake in preening mode

He spent time preening all over his body.

Mandarin drake preening his tummy

I watched him for ages.

Mandarin drake preening back feathers

He has gorgeous feathers.  What a beautiful bird!