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jbananaBaby birds have appeared on the lakes where we go lockdown walking. There seem to be lots more ducklings this year. The mothers are very hungry, probably because they at the top, and fewer people go up there. One duck had 11 ducklings, as far as I could count (they wouldn't keep still). Most of them have three or four but another had just one.
We didn't see the coot babies when they were tiny. I suppose we're not going as often as last year. So we missed the "tiny ball of fluff with a red face" stage. The Egyptian geese had one gosling but it was gone next time we saw them. A swan's been sitting on a nest for ages. The swan population is ridiculous. I lost count at 40. A Canada goose also sat on a nest for a long time, but apparently without result. First for this year: great crested grebe nest. I mean, first time for us. The grebes presumably did this before.
The herons have disappeared. The cormorants only turn up very occasionally. The gulls come and go, but it's strangely like being at the seaside when they're there. And the moorhens are always there but very scared of humans.
Other common birds are often hanging around: crows, robins, pigeons, wagtails, sparrows, blackbirds. The crows often stand on the edge of the lake. It's like they want to get in the water but don't dare. One time we saw a dead crow in the water. Perhaps its curiosity was too much and it tried a swim.
We didn't see the coot babies when they were tiny. I suppose we're not going as often as last year. So we missed the "tiny ball of fluff with a red face" stage. The Egyptian geese had one gosling but it was gone next time we saw them. A swan's been sitting on a nest for ages. The swan population is ridiculous. I lost count at 40. A Canada goose also sat on a nest for a long time, but apparently without result. First for this year: great crested grebe nest. I mean, first time for us. The grebes presumably did this before.
The herons have disappeared. The cormorants only turn up very occasionally. The gulls come and go, but it's strangely like being at the seaside when they're there. And the moorhens are always there but very scared of humans.
Other common birds are often hanging around: crows, robins, pigeons, wagtails, sparrows, blackbirds. The crows often stand on the edge of the lake. It's like they want to get in the water but don't dare. One time we saw a dead crow in the water. Perhaps its curiosity was too much and it tried a swim.
