A day spend in central London gave me the opportunity to pay
an evening visit to Regents Park. Like some of the other central London Parks
there can be a surprising amount of wildlife present, despite the number of
people (and today, despite the frequent showers!).
Water-birds around the lake were the most obvious species,
particularly the Grey Herons which can be ridiculously tame. Several pairs nest
in a heronry on one of the islands in the lake, and the birds from this heronry
can sometimes be seen competing with various ducks and Feral Pigeons for scraps
of bread thrown, or dropped, by visitors.
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Other species can also be very approachable in the park,
mainly common species such as this Woodpigeon, which was feeding unconcerned
only feet away from a busy path:
‘Wild’ corners provide suitable habitat for a few breeding
pairs of warblers, such as Blackcap, as well as feeding sites for passage
migrants.
Both Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff were singing near this
area.
Introduced species are also very noticeable in the park,
including Ring-necked Parakeets, Red-crested Pochard and Mandarin Duck, all of
which have self sustaining naturalised populations in London. There is a
collection of captive wildfowl species in the park as well, so not all of the
wildfowl that can be seen are free living!
A pair of Red-crested Pochard flying over the lake, and a Mandarin drake at the lakes edge.
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