Having completed 12 of my 27 GCSE exams, it was time for a short break at the start of my half term holiday, and with my dad working near Kingston, I opted to have a walk around Richmond Park.
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| f Kestrel |
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| Autofocus failed me but I think it's still fairly cool! |
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| f Kestrel |
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| f Kestrel |
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| f Kestrel |
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| f Kestrel flexing muscle |
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| ah that's nice |
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| Blue tit food |
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| lunch |
Although typically quiet, I thought it would be nice to start the holiday in a good mood and try and get outside. My walk to Pen Ponds, at the centre of the park, included Whitethroats and Greenfinches, while I kept an eye to the skies in the hope of raptors. It was extremely quiet, with Whitethroat numbers in the first 2-3km barely reach 5 individuals, showing just how slow and dull the Spring passage was. A few Small Heaths and Small Coppers were also seen along the way, while Reed Buntings were pretty abundant.
When I eventually reached Pen Ponds I caught up with the Friday Bird Group, where I met Paula Redmond, who had showed me around the park once before, and I'd also met her at Beddington Farmlands last autumn as well. Having missed a couple of Little Owls seemingly by seconds I was typically disappointed - still not seen one of the blasted birds - but I was delighted when one of these flew into view right by the edge of Upper Pen Pond, landing briefly but well enough to get a few record shots. My first hairstreak...
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| Small Heath |
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| Small Copper |
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| Green Hairstreak (first ever!) |
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| Green Hairstreak |
As we walked past the Pen Ponds, a distant shape on the opposite side of the lake appeared to be a Common Sandpiper, while Sand Martins were busy collecting mud off the path for their nest holes. The obvious highlight of the day was when one of the pairs of Common Terns landed on a raft metres off the centre of the ponds. The male then proceeded to dart around showing his prize to his mate, who was unimpressed for a long while, before eventually taking the fish, showing superbly for the small crowd, allowing views I'd never had before of a tern. I even managed a few decent pictures for once...
Once the terns retreated back to the middle of the lake, mostly due to a dog that had been sent into the Ponds, I continued on, missing a Hobby that circled the park with a few Kestrel. I barely saw a bird for the next hour, but managed to get a few Common Buzzard and a Red Kite over in a mini-skywatch while having lunch.
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Terns food pass |
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| Common Terns food pass |
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| Common Terns food pass |
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| Common Terns |
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| Common Terns |
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| Common Terns |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Tern preening |
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| Common Tern preening |
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| Common Tern |
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| Common Terns |
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| Common Tern |
With the temperatures reaching 27C and more, I decided to cut my time short as I could barely spot a bird. I didn't even see a Skylark or a Stonechat on the day...
On the way back, I stopped to admire a pair of Kestrels that were nesting in a tree practically on a footpath. This has unsurprisingly brought about a lot of frustration from some. While a few people, like myself, realised how close we were to the pair and so kept our distance a little bit - my pictures are terrible compared to some pictures taken by others of the pair - others have been standing at the base of the tree, or extremely close, trying to get amazing pictures. Although the pair don't seem to mind people being close, I don't see why it's necessary to get as close as some people have been getting...
That aside, it was brilliant to watch the pair interacting, and I was fortunate to watch the male bring in a young blue tit for its mate, causing a slight squabble!
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| m Reed Bunting |
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| m Reed Bunting |
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| m Reed Bunting |
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| m Reed Bunting |
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| And some Swifts because they're the best birds... |
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| Swift |
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| Spotted(?) Deer |
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| Rabbit |
I then headed back, seeing very little else on the way back to where my dad was working, ending a largely disappointing day's birding. Thanks again to Paula for giving me some camera tips and showing me around. One day, I might even see a Little Owl...
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