My pretty little girl, Caisley #cats

Herons and egrets in various different places: grey heron at St James’s Park in London and at Reading Bridge on the Thames. Little egrets at the Hythe, Maldon in Essex; and at Whiteknights Lake, University of Reading @everyheron.bsky.social #birds

I managed a quick visit to St James’s Park in London last week. I used to work near the park and I still try to visit it regularly. Here are some birds I saw: great white pelicans; black swan; grey heron; and a rather grumpy looking young herring gull #birds

Birds in Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire: cormorant perching on the boat Zanzibar; Egyptian geese on a ramp; a swan family preening; lots of black-headed gulls squabbling for food #birds

Some lovely animals at Calcot Mill near Reading in Berkshire: small horses, a sheep and two very sweet cats.

These ducks are gadwalls. They’re not as well-known as some duck species perhaps because the male isn’t particularly showy. But he has lovely grey/plumage full of patterns and swirls. You can see his white wing patches and black tail. The female has an orange bill. Hyde Park, London #birds

A few grey heron pics from Hyde Park in London. Heron with fish; heron with cormorant friend on the new swimmer’s ramp at the Lido; heron with swan family @everyheron.bsky.social #birds

I watched this male mute swan for a while. Someone had given him rice which he was picking off the bank. He took regular sips of water to help the food go down. Then he sat back and showed how strong he was, to discourage other swans from snatching his rice River Thames, Reading #birds

A Egyptian goose family with one well-grown youngster (first pic), New River, north London #birds

St James’s Park in London on a breezy but pleasant early evening: grey heron; black swan; great white pelican (all 6 were out, causing some havoc among the pedestrians); carrion crow, apparently “for His Majesty’s pleasure” @everyheron.bsky.social #birds

My longish-haired tabby cat, Caisley #cats

My beautiful floofy cat, Caisley

A few herons from Hyde Park in London. The park has a small herony, so it’s a great place to get good views of the birds. The 3rd heron is standing on a landing stage which officially belongs to a black-headed gull @everyheron.bsky.social #birds

I saw these cheeky starlings at the Lido cafe in Hyde Park in London. They wait for customers to leave and then rush in to grab any uneaten food. They look so smart in their sparkly waistcoats #birds

I came across this pretty Muscovy duck by the River Thames in Pangbourne in Berkshire. They’re not native to the UK but there are always a few around. I’ve no idea where this bird was born #birds

I spent a lovely few hours with the birds at Hyde Park in London the other day. Pictures are: lesser black backed gull; cheeky starlings waiting for afternoon tea at the Lido cafe; mute swan giving me a suspicious look; young great cormorant stretching its wings 🪶

I was so pleased to see this large swan family in Henley-on-Thames. There were no fewer than 9 big healthy cygnets. #birds

I did my waterbird count for @btobirds.bsky.social at Reading University. Lovely to see the 3 cygnets still doing well. I was surprised to see a grey heron and little egret in the same photo shot, though they were quite far from each other. @everyheron.bsky.social

It’s not often that I find my skittish 2 year old Caisley asleep, but she was having a nice nap earlier today #cats

Three grey herons I saw at Hyde Park in London. They were all clustered near a man who was feeding them fishy treats @everyheron.bsky.social #birds

This crow, on the River Thames at Woolwich, was eating something small but unpleasant-looking 🪶

Two lesser-black backed gulls, the River Thames and an orange boat in front of All Saints Church, Bisham. The church originally dates from the C12th century #birds #churches

A wonderful visit to the Inner Farne islands, Northumbria - Arctic tern, Atlantic puffin, hordes and hordes of guillemots #birds

Arctic terns, Inner Farne, Northumbria. National Trust manage the land to provide breeding areas for the birds. The price the terns have to pay is that they have humans walking on boardwalks near their nests but the price the humans have to pay is that we get attacked by them! #birds

Could anyone help me with an owl query? My friend Katherine lives in Bratislava (Slovakia) and saw these owlets in trees outside her office window in an urban area. Can anyone identify which species they are? Thanks! #birds #owls

In Reading (UK) there are a large number of mixed greylag/domestic (white) geese. Sometimes their gosling broods are of mixture of plumages. This family have some white/grey goslings and some which are predominantly grey. White parents often have pretty pale blue eyes #birds

Female mallard. These ducks are underestimated even though they have beautiful intricate markings Christchurch Meadows, Reading #birds

Hello @stoooo.bsky.social I saw an exhibition at Tate Britain which included this owl in the bottom left corner of a painting by Edward Burra

I was watching one of my local swan families yesterday. I was concerned that the number of cygnets has dropped from 5 to 4, but then I noticed that one of them was taking a ride on Mum’s back ❤️ River Thames, Reading #birds

It’s gosling season! This means that there is family after family of cute squeaky fuzzy yellow-y goslings which will soon grow into large honky hissy adults. Canada geese, County Lock, Kennet & Avon Canal, Reading #birds

Tug GPS VINCIA at Woolwich Arsenal Pier, on a wet and windy River Thames on Tuesday this week @patriciastoughton.bsky.social

I visited the University of Reading’s Whiteknights Lake today to carry out a waterbjrd survey and saw: a grey heron hunting in the reeds; a Eurasian coot; a young Canada gosling; and a teenage Egyptian gosling #birds

Grey herons I saw today in Hyde Park in London. The bird at the Lido Cafe was looming over the tables, waiting for someone to leave their plate unguarded. Most people kept away but a couple took the nearest table and chatted to it. These are my kind of people. @everyheron.bsky.social #birds

Video of a spotted flycatcher using a gravestone as a launch pad from which to hawk for insects. Video taken on Monday at the birding paradise that is Ondrejský cintorín (St Andrew’s Cemetery) in Bratislava, Slovakia. There were also some collared doves #birds #Slovakia

The lido cafe at Hyde Park in London provides many temptations to the local birdlife. This heron scared off some people eating pies who moved inside the cafe, muttering. The heron managed to nab a chip. A magpie and some starlings ate some healthier salads. @everyheron.bsky.social #birds

I was lucky to have a second close encounter with a heron in two days. This time it was in Hampstead Heath in London. The heron was looking annoyed that its way back down to the pond was blocked by a woman sitting on the wooden platform #birds @everyheron.bsky.social

Look who I found today in Oxford @everyheron.bsky.social The Osney Bridge heron! #birds

Male Mandarin duck at the Round Pond. Kensington Gardens, London. He seemed to be finding something interesting to eat. #birds

Cormorant looking calm above the rushing water at Caversham Weir, River Thames. I have seen them fishing at weirs. This bird is generally known as the cormorant in the UK but it should be known by its full name, the great cormorant, because it is indeed great. #birds

While in the Ashmolean Museum I came across this beautiful costume worn by the Japanese kabuki actor Bandō Tamasaburō V. It’s covered with egrets! @everyheron.bsky.social

Here is my lovely cat Caisley, who is a little under 2 years old. She arrived last week from Cats Protection in Reading.

While at the Whiteknights Campus of the University of Reading this morning, I came across a moorhen and a pair of speckled wood butterflies. #birds #butterflies

This elegant swan is nesting in Caversham Marina just off the River Thames in Reading, UK. I like the feathery nest. Her mate was on guarding duty next to her. #birds

A few birds I saw at the WWT London Wetland Centre at Barnes: Bob the grey heron at his favourite place, the otters’ enclosure; a fishing great crested grebe; a white stork which is part of the collection. #birds

I visited Emmer Green pond on the northern edge of Berkshire. The pond is home to a good number of mandarin ducks. There are also a few domestic ducks, one of which looks rather like an Indian runner with its vertical posture 🪶

I walked through St James’s Park in London to Hyde Park today. Some waterbird highlights: great white pelican and grey heron; male gadwall; male common pochard having a scratch; another grey heron @everyheron.bsky.social 🪶

Some pictures of Egyptian geese and goslings in Henley and Reading. These non-native geese sometimes breed very early in the year and sadly many of their goslings are lost. The well-grown gosling in pic 3 survived some very cold weather to get to this size 🪶

Beautiful mute swan pair, Kennet & Avon Canal, Aldermaston, UK. I do hope they breed this spring. 🪶

I had to bribe these feral pigeons with bird food in order to get the photos. Then I looked the other way and found that I was being menaced by a swan. River Thames, Reading 🪶

St James’s Park in London is a home to a large number of birds. Many are wild birds, though a few are part of a collection. Last week I saw a black swan; great white pelican; ring-necked parakeet (and magpie) and grey heron 🪶