Feral Pigeons Courting (and Bonking)

I spotted these amorous pigeons in Mumbles last Saturday, March 15th:

Mallards and Feral Pigeons

Not the most exciting birds, perhaps, but about all I could get during a wet hour in the park at lunchtime:

Recent Bird Shots

A few avian shots from the last few days.

Coal Tit:

Male Chaffinch:

Nuthatch:

A couple of days ago, I walked along the coastal path from Langland Bay to Caswell Bay, hoping to see Choughs. There were none there, although I did hear my first spring migrant of the year - a singing Chiffchaff. I had to content myself with photographing the Feral Pigeons as they flew past:

Carrion Crows seem to always appear when I walk along Swansea seafront. I'm sure they can pick me out from other people, and zero in on me as a potential source of food. Here's one who suddenly appeared when he saw me eating my sandwiches:

Today was a beautiful, almost summery, day, and I went down to the park for a bit in late afternoon to see what was about. No sooner had I sat down to eat my sandwiches (food again!), than I heard a strange squawk from above. I looked up to see the lonely male Ring-necked Parakeet, exactly where I saw him about a year ago when I first started this blog: 

He was clearly getting into the breeding mood, and was peering down towards this nest hole which has been commandeered by a pair of Jackdaws:

Unfortunately for him, the nearest female is probably hundreds of miles away!



Mumbles

Yesterday, I made the short rip round to Mumbles, a small settlement at the far western end of Swansea Bay. I had heard that Grey Seals had been seen hauling themselves up onto rocks at Limeslade Bay, so this was my first port of call:



Unfortunately, there were no seals to be seen, so I walked only a few yards to the adjacent bay, Bracelet Bay:

This is a good spot for Black-headed Gulls and the mucher rarer Mediterranean Gulls. Here is a juvenile Mediterranean Gull:

Note that the Med. Gull has a much thicker and more downturned bill than the more slender beak of this adult Black-headed Gull:

I then made a brief visit to Mumbles Pier:

There were very few birds remaining at the Kittiwake colony, this juvenile being the most confiding:

It seemed to spend most of its time alternately preening:

and resting:

and occasionally calling:

This adult bird was the only other Kittiwake on this once-crowded ledge:

This pair of pigeons had taken over the area vacated by Kittiwakes:

I walked along to the end of the pier, where the only other people were a few fishermen, and spotted this auk floating below on the sea (Is it a juvenile Razorbill?):

As I was leaving, I spotted this Great Black-backed Gull perched atop a post. I had to stop for a few pictures, as I hadn't photographed this species satisfactorily before, always finding them a bit skittish:

I was surprised how close this bird allowed me to approach:

Ducks in the Rain

This evening, I went for a walk around Brynmill Park, Swansea, in the rain. The first thing I saw, as I arrived, was a brood of young Mallards on the lake. A single Lesser Black-backed Gull was dive-bombing them, trying to grab a youngster for his supper. He failed, the chicks managing to escape the marauding gull by diving into cover, and even by plunging underwater. The gull eventually gave up, and went and waited at the other end of the small lake:

Two broods of young Mallards continued to feed out in the open at the other end of the pond, perhaps too young to realise the potential danger:

The numerous apparantly-non-breeding birds spent their time upending:

and just loafing in the rain:

Besides the scruffy-looking Mallards, there were three or four Tufted Ducks floating around towards the middle of the pond. Much more usual to see them here in the Winter. Here's one of the males:

This flower was part of a large display of this species (whatever it is):

Park authorities seem a lot more aware of environmental issues these days, and there has been quite a lot of planting of native flora in and around the water, including this Purple Loosestrife:

Finally, a picture of a rather wet-looking Feral Pigeon:

Personally, after all the hot, dry, weather we've had, I was glad of the rain.