Spent the last three days in London. The weather there is even better than at home - with not as many of the signs of autumn we have been noticing.
Spent Wednesday afternoon and all day Thursday in central London. Birds few and far between, with only Magpies, Woodpigeons and Feral Pigeons at all numerous. Most exciting find was a young Grey squirrel (the first I've ever seen) in Hyde Park. Down in Surrey it was a different story. Best trips were along the river through Guilford and around the National Trust estate of Box Hill. The walk in Guilford brought two (invisible) Jays, 25 eclipse Mallards and a few Wrens. Best sighting was a Common Frog (below) hopping about in short grass beside the tow path. Also of interest was the shrubby plant shown below which had purple, five-petalled flowers and pinnate leaves.
The time spent in East Horsley produced a Jay (good views this time), Great spotted Woodpecker (heard), Blue and Great Tits (visiting peanuts) and at least two singing Robins. A trip to Box Hill on Saturday was particularly good with Green Woodpecker (heard) at the visitor centre and Nuthatch (heard) at the stepping stones. Best plants were on the steep, south-facing slopes (see picture below). These included Stemless Thistle (pictured), a very low-growing bellflower(pictured), a five-petalled, pink flower (and a matching yellow one - IDs to follow) plus literally dozens of short and medium sized herbs. Also of interest were several grasshoppers, and various butterflies including a (probable) Common Blue and an exquisite Small Copper. In the woods were Yew (pictured), Holly (pictured), Dead man's Beard (pictured) and lots of Box.