Tuesday 21st. February 2012

A short article and picture in the local free paper caught my eye at the end of last week . It was about a different species of Parakeet found in Kelsey Park , Beckenham , a site that I visit during the winter . It was nice to arrive in plus temperature , although , until the sun rose above the mature trees , it felt chilly . On a previous visit , I thought that I had seen a different Parakeet , but it was a fly by at speed , so I couldn't be sure . The presence of Parakeets was obvious from my arrival , but on checking them out , I could only find the Rose-ringed species on my first lap of the park . I stopped for a while at the sunny end of the lake watching a pair of Nuthatches , high in a London Plane . As I did so , three birds flew into a Cotoneaster bush , but before I could check them out , they were gone again , but it was obvious that they were Thrushes . Beside the bush was a little shelter with seats , so I made myself comfortable and waited . Sure enough , after a few minutes , the

three Redwings returned to feed . After all the time I spent in the cold weather trying to get near the species , they were now feeding not 5mtrs. away from me . They had their fill and flew off several

times , but when other people came along , they disappeared for good . Apart from a few fly-over Fieldfares whilst hedgelaying on Saturday , they were the only Winter Thrushes I have seen since they cleared all the berries from next door's bush . Another lap of the lake , and plenty more Rose-

ringed Parakeets , including this one looking very at home . Then , whilst the local Carrion Crows were arguing noisily in the top of another London Plane , a pair of Parakeets flew by , calling and

flying differently to the RRPs. They landed , and I managed to get a record shot of the pair , just before the Crows drove them off with all their noise . Things quietened down a bit after a while , and

I spotted the pair returning and settling right at the top of yet another London Plane on the other side of the Beck . The better view enabled me to confirm that they were indeed Blue-crowned Parakeets ., a species native to South America .The article had said that there were 8 birds around the park , and later I did see a group of eight birds high up , flying like the original pair , but I couldn't make a positive ID of the group . Walking past one of the areas where bread is thrown in to feed the ducks , I

saw this female Tufted Duck that has a rubber band in her bill and around her neck , but could still feed . Fortunately a local birder also saw her , and said that he knew who to contact to sort things out . While I was on site , the Gulls appeared , like something out of Hitchcock's 'The Birds' , swarming , noisily over the lake before settling down . Amongst them was this BHGull in full

breeding plumage . First time around the heronry , things were pretty quiet , but by the second lap ,

the sun had reached most of the nests , and it was obvious that this year's generation had left the egg .
This was proved when a youngster popped it's head over the edge of the nest . It was followed very

soon afterwards by another , and a third could well have been in the nest too , but I couldn't be sure . I think this was the nest of the pair I saw mating a few visits ago . The nest below the family , still

had the adult sitting on eggs . And it wasn't just the Grey Herons that were working on the next

generation , this female Coot was found sitting tight on her nest on the way back to the car .