Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Spring - and a sting - in the air in Finsbury Park
As usual, my Tuesday morning cycle in to work took me through Finsbury Park. Rain had fallen during the night but the sun was out early and warming the crisp air from a clear blue sky.
And as I cycled down the path by the railway line the long-awaited sound of summer guests rang out - a Chiffchaff somewhere in the brambles and, then, a Blackcap, with its sparkling, melodious song.
Of course they may not have been guests - some do stay for the winter - but it's now you start to hear the songsters - the Chaffinch with its sliding scale and ski-jump flourish; the Chiffchaff whose name is an intended onomatopoeia. And then the Blackcap, whose determination to lay an early claim to its usual summer spot had taken it up to a high branch, from where its clear, fluting warble told the world that spring was here - and the boys were back in town.
To top it all, for once presence of bird and presence of camera coincided, and so I managed several shots of the singing Silvia Atricapilla before speeding off merrily down the path towards the station with an extra spin in my wheels.
Unfortunately what came my way was less welcome - a loud buzz, and something smacked into the top of my chest and inside my t-shirt. I stopped the bike and grappled for a few seconds with jacket and t-shirt before I eventually realised that the thing had gone, albeit having given me a moderately painful sting.
What it was is something of a mystery to me - I have seen plenty of bees this year but, as yet, no wasps; and there was no sting left to remove. Fortunately I was not, it seems, allergic to whatever it was. It did make me think in a wholly different manner, however, about the perils of cycling.
A few photos of the Blackcap are attached.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mary Hogan on
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What a wonderful morning, Tuesday was a special day. Thanks for lovely description and the blackcap
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Permalink Reply by Grant on
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Ive been stung by horse flies when out on the bike - they normally give you a few while they're there when they get inside your shirt though.
Nice pictures!
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Permalink Reply by Dick Harris on
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Splendid pictures.
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Its a terrific spring with so much blossom and lovely to hear the dawn chorus. I have seen an occasional wasp around but have never seen horse flies in this area (just read that the female horse fly depends on a blood meal from a mammal in order to reproduce, ugggh). Love the photos and description.
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Fabulous pictures and I was almost there with you with the words. Thank you! Is it just me, though, or does the Blackcap look rather like a sparrow who's dunked his head in a saucer of toner?
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Permalink Reply by HarringayBirder on
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Rumbled! I never thought people would work it out ;)
But yes, it does indeed look that way. Interesting how the word "capillus" meaning hair (the word atracapilla taking the meaning black-crowned) is similar, and related, to "capillary" which refers to blood vessels. Especially as the female Blackcap's crown is red!
Or is it just me?. .
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I recently saw a pair of adult woodpeckers in the Park with their distinctive red feathered heads.
I only had a camera phone which wasn't good enough to capture them.
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I have seen a Green Woodpecker a couple of times in the park.. I am not sure if I can recall seeing a Greater Spotted Woodpecker. I certainly haven't seen a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. I doubt if anyone has around here but I'd love to be corrected.
Was it Green Woodpeckers you saw?
)
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Permalink Reply by The Black Lark on
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Nice! It's the reason I cycle through the park every day.
(The chiff-chaffs, finches, blackbirds - not hornets or horseflies)
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