It's the little things that always make me most happy and today was being able to identify a wasp-like insect that was scuttling around the soil on the towpath. There were two of them  - Panzers nomad bee. I think they are quite common and it may be like getting pleasure identifying something like a wood pigeon for the first time but you get your kicks where you can:

 

 

These little bees are quite widespread and are also known as cuckoo bees. They hunt out nest sites of other bees, lay eggs and when the larvae hatch, they kill the host egg and eat the pollen. Not very sociable but I like them.

There was also a bumblebee mimic hoverfly:

And my favourites, the bee fly which remind me of a hummingbird. They are very small and have a huge long proboscis to drink nectar.

The deer was barking across the river again today. More families are out and about - the greylag are now down to one gosling:

But there appears to be a second brood of Egyptian geese:

The Canada Geese were more scattered today - some in the safety of the park itself and just one family on the lake. The coot have taken over the main nesting grebe nest:

The other nest on the far side of the lake has completely vanished now.

The marsh marigolds were looking lovely in the sunshine:

And red clover is appearing:

The warblers have a very large presence by the lake: Willow, chiffchaff, garden, blackcap, reed and sedge warbler today. I didn't hear the whitethroat today but reed bunting were in the blackthorn instead.

Canada goose parents bring all their goslings together in flocks known as crèches and the goslings are communally looked after by all the adults. This big kindergarten is for safety and there were 13 goslings counted today:

 

There was also a greylag family having a turn round the lake:

Pond skaters were under the overhanging branches:

And a male reed bunting was making himself heard:

There was quite a bit of insect activity today this morning - the first sighting of a hornet who was a bit too buzzy and flighty for me. Here is a picture of one taken last year in the same area:

The first hot day saw the Canada Goose nest deserted:

And the parents on the lake with three gosling:

All the other nests were still occupied but it won't be long until the area is mobbed with babies. The treecreeper was still around the copse busy in the trees and long-tailed tits were flitting in the canopy.

A pied wagtail made an uncommon visitor to the lake this morning:

 

And a grebe was braying with nothing paying any attention to him at all:

There were a lot of dead fish around the lake this morning - I counted four. One had what looked like eggs not far from it but on talking to one of the fisherman, it seems the water is too cold for them to be spawning at the moment. I have no idea what it was but it looked like yellow roe. There was also a dead fox cub under a hawthorn tree which I at first thought was asleep. It appeared to have curled up and died as the position was very natural and it didn't look in bad condition.

The terrapin were back on their favourite spot having a sun-bathe:

 

Many more flowers are coming out now - black medick is just starting to come through, as is comfrey. I thought this picture of herb robert growing out of a tree was a lovely shot:

The lady's smock is also common now in the grassy areas:

The coot nest that was a grebe nest that is now a coot nest is back in action and on the other side of the lake, another coot was sitting tight:

The grebe have stopped fiddling with their twigs and are now incubating eggs:

The kingfisher was very active today as well. Unfortunately I had the wrong setting for my camera so only managed to get a blurred shot:

And a bottom shot:

Next time.......

You know summer is almost here when the sounds of screeching and screaming come from the lake, heralding the arrival of the Common Tern. There were two today, both flying around the lake and taking rests on the same buoys that they used last year:

I hadn't noticed the heron looking on until I downloaded the photo:

There was a treecreeper in the little copse where the Canada goose is nesting. It was flitting amongst the logs at ground level and twisting around a tree but was too fast for a good photograph:

 

Moving further along the lake, I came across a patch of marsh marigolds in an area I don't usually go to as it's in a tiny little dip where the fisherman sit:

One of the Canada goose nests has been abandoned with broken eggs - one a little way from the nest and one in the nest itself:

There were a couple of robin nearby carrying out their courtship display. The female was acting like a chick and being fed by the male to check he can provide for her when she is on the nest.

The coot nest has been taken over by a pair of great-crested grebe. They have undone some of the coot's work and made it easier for them to walk onto. Grebe nests always look very waterlogged and too low down in the water. Another pair were busy making one on the other side:

 

 A kestrel was checking things out on the towpath when I was heading back: