This week, we’re not escaping to a chalk stream or peering through reeds to see what we can spot. No, we’re in the ritzy Western side of London, at Hyde Park. I met a dear friend of mine for a mystery activity, and to my delight she arrived with a pink gift bag full of peanuts! A potter around the park it is, then.
Just two minutes into our walk from Marble Arch we were treated to our first (short-lived) downpour. As the sun poked its head out again, we were momentarily transported from the Serpentine (the lake in Hyde Park) to the seaside by the sound of a Herring Gull in full ‘song’.
I’m always in awe of the volume of their cry – it could be heard over the cars, buses, planes and general din of the city. A harsh sound, yes, but necessary. Back in their natural environment, it needs to carry for miles over the sound of the wind and waves crashing against cliffs.
There is perhaps just one bird in the park that is even noisier – the one we’re really looking out for.
Ring-Necked Parakeets are the most exotic feathered residents, except, perhaps, for the Pelicans ‘round the corner in St James’ Park. The parakeets are everywhere, and rumours about how they came to live here are rife.
I rather like the one about how they were released for a scene in a film at the famous Elstree Studios, but no one had considered how they’d re-capture them afterwards.
It’s also known that Jimi Hendrix kept some parakeets, and apparently enjoyed watching them fly around him while he smoked… and perhaps left his window open one day. There seems to be no agreement on which rumours are true.
I suppose I can’t casually mention the Pelicans in London without explaining. Gifted to us in the 1600s by the Russian Ambassador, Pelicans have lived in St James’ Park ever since – wings clipped, but free to roam.
(I remember the first time I encountered them. It felt like a feathery fever dream, as I had no idea they were there, and my colleagues at the time acted like they were no different to the pigeons all around us!)
The Grey Herons here aren’t as numerous as the other species, but they make themselves known with their ugly squawk when they arrive. Usually seen elegantly picking fish out of the water (and inelegantly swallowing them whole), these Herons are less fussy. (I dread to think what they eat here, aside from the fish and mice, but they did join the occasional throng of birds around a tourist dishing out huge chunks of bread.)
Those throngs are a pretty wild mixture, at times. The only birds that really kept their distance from people were the Great-Crested Grebes, who at this time of year have humbug babies with them – sometimes riding on their backs! And the Goldeneye and Pochard ducks were both a little shy.
We created our own throng with a scattering of peanuts, and as I knelt to hand-feed the pigeons, Greylag, Egyptian and Canada Geese, a lumbering presence appeared out of the water. A Mute Swan! Rumoured to have strength enough to ‘break a grown man’s arm’, there is actually no record of this ever having happened. But you do have to wonder…
Fortunately, the swans were in good humour today. Alongside them, Crows, Coots and Moorhens scrambled to pick up any crumbs.
But best of all, the Starlings. I can’t tell you how special it is to feed these little birds in person. At home, they descend on the feeders in a flurry of wings and beaks and noise – then depart again as soon as they spot you. Here, though, they sidle up to you as you eat and even sing next to you.
I only had my small bridge camera with me, but that was plenty good enough thanks to the bravery of these urban birds.
Wild This Week usually tackles the latest seasonal occurrences, but the beauty of London parks is that most of these birds are here year-round. The paths are accessible and there are cafes, toilets and benches everywhere. It’s free, the gardens are beautiful and the wildlife really isn’t shy.
Purists may say it’s not ‘wildlife’ at all. But for some people, it’s the only green space they can access. So who cares?
I had a wonderful time sharing something I love with a friend who would not describe herself as a birdwatcher, and the pizzas we got from the cafe on the Serpentine were far better than anything I’ve eaten at a nature reserve.
And when I needed to recharge after seeing quite so many people all in one place? I just head back out to my local chalk hills (where I saw absolutely nothing!).
Thanks for reading. Let me know what wildlife you’ve seen in your nearest town or city!
You mention about what the herons might eat - but even more of an enigma is the pelicans in St James's. I once saw one of them take one of the pigeons!
It never ceases to amaze me how much green space there is in London and how varied the creatures that inhabit it. Not birds I know, but the squirrels are always proper little posers who seem to love being the centre of attention.