As we find autumn and head into winter, a new London strand of the 365 Day Nature Play Challenge. We spot parakeets OUTSIDE London Zoo; feed the wildlife in St James’ Park, negotiate a flood and go on a hunt for lots of different types of rodent. Then finally we work out a nature game for an urban jungle…

Find the spring and summer London challenges here

63 – Spotting parakeets

Wednesday 29 October. Rainy. 14°C

My cousin introduced us to the wonders of spotting parakeets in London a few years ago. Walking round Kew Gardens she’d point out the bright green loud birds at the tops of trees. We tried spotting some in February but there weren’t any about. They clearly appear when they want to. Today we’re going to the Zoo, only we’ve left it too late and it’s shut. Standing outside, wondering what to do, we can’t miss a hullabaloo in the trees opposite. Squawking, flapping and generally being smug are about ten parakeets, enjoying their freedom and generally monopolising the conversation.

We’re off then. We find more in Regent’s Park, having verbal battles with a similarly large amount of ravens. It’s hard to tell whose winning but both seem to be thriving.

61 – Feeding the wildlife in St James’ Park

Thursday 30 October. Cloudy. 14°C

When B was about 3 or 4 we went to St James’ Park and met a pelican. It was standing by the water looking aloof and was surprisingly tolerant of little girls. I was terrified but B wasn’t. In the years since we’ve been back a few times wondering if we could see it again. Bird flu scuppered us for a few years, they were locked away. More recently we’ve just failed to find them. Today we’re going to try again. It’s clear that you’re not allowed to feed them (fair enough) but we’re bringing a supply of seeds and nuts in case we meet anything else peckish.

B is feeling a bit whiny. She’s BORED and she wants to go home. We get a snack from the café and sit on a park bench to find some energy. We manage this and we also find a lot of geese and ducks. B decides to have a go at making a 61 out of seeds for the post. It’s a challenge. The geese like the seeds. The ducks do too. It takes her about ten minutes to get one we can photo before it’s eaten.

B finds a friend who also like feeding birds and shares the seeds. The word goes around the bird community and soon there is a gaggle of geese, coots and ducks around them. Then a baby swan arrives, who is not at all shy at eating out of little girls hands (“ouch!”, “well, what did you expect?!”). Then a black swan arrives and the day is complete. B is officially, definitely, no longer bored.

When the seeds are gone we continue our search for the pelicans. We find more geese and it turns out they like walnuts. We also find a heron. It doesn’t, but it checks it’s not a fish we’re offering it before wandering off. Finally we find the pelicans sleeping under a tree. They’re not in an entertaining mood but that’s ok because B has just seen what can happen when a London pigeon spots the possibility of food.

She’s enraptured. “What do pigeons eat?”

It’s a good question. Anything? But not brazil nuts which are all we have left. Even pigeons can’t manage those, though they try. In the end we buy a packet of popcorn. I scrunch some into each of B’s hands and she’s soon covered in birds. We definitely need to wash our hands (and heads, shoulders and clothes) after this! It’s fantastic entertainment if occasionally terrifying. The geese are trying to get some too but they’ve got no chance.

Finally the packet is finished and I try to pull B away. She doesn’t want to go. She’s giggling like crazy.

L: “Come on. We’ve got to find squirrels next!”

B: “Squirrels are boring. Can we buy more popcorn?”

No. I’m calling time. They’re beginning to get overwhelming and I don’t want to get pooed on. B grouches her way away from the bird area around the lake and we head for the tree lined bit nearer the road where the birds are not, looking for a squirrel who might be in the mood for a brazil nut. B is still wanting to go back to the pigeons when we spot one looking about. B takes a nut, crouches down and holds it out, and the squirrel runs straight over and politely takes it. B forgets about pigeons.

The squirrels are the best thing of all. They’re so polite and cute. B manages to hold one’s paw as it fetches another nut. They run off, bury them and come back for more. We’re there well over half an hour, making lots of different squirrel friends. When my nuts run out I try and catch plane tree leaves, which fall beautifully and slowly. Finally, B’s nuts run out and she comes to join me. Then we go to wash our hands. B says it’s the best day of her life. A very cheap one too.

60 – Negotiating a flood

Friday 31 October. Cloudy. 14°C

An odd challenge this. We’re walking to Kentish Town station on our way back west when we find the entire high street flooded. A water main has burst and a torrent of water is running down the street, making a fast river about 10 cm deep all the way across. We need to cross. B and I dive across optimistically and arrive at the other side with soaking trainers. My mum tries to find an alternative and is directed to a helpful high point but still ends up with one wet foot.

We watch the water for ages, dodging cars as they drive through and splash us. It’s fun to see the cyclists moving along with their feet held as high as they can. We walk against the flow, trying to work out where it’s coming from but that’s cut off by firemen so we don’t got to the source. It’s a reminder of the power of water and the ease with which these things are usually managed. Hopefully no properties got in the way.

54 – How many different types of rodent can you find?

Saturday 8 November. Cloudy. 14°C

We’re back at London Zoo and we’ve finally spotted their capybaras. They’ve been there a few months now but always inside when we’ve visited. It’s only the second time we’ve seen capybaras in real life. These ones are really big and wonderfully stoic looking. It’s clearly time for a challenge. I turn to B for inspiration.

B: “What other animals are like capybaras?”

L: “Guinea pigs. They’re rodents.”

B: “Why don’t we see how many other rodents we can find?”

I suggest she read the signs that the zoo have helpfully put out but she’s googling what rodents can you see at London Zoo. The answer is jumping rats and porcupines. We’re both intrigued. We head into the ‘nightlife’ section and find harvest mice and field mice and weird naked mole rats. The jumping rats aren’t showing themselves. Then we head over to the other side of the zoo to find porcupines. They’re asleep. On the way we discover that bats, mongooses and meerkats are definitely not rodents and nor are bushbabys, though B swears the thing in the bushbaby cage is an escaped large jumping rat.

Then we go in search of rodents outside… or more specifically squirrels. We’re going to see if the ones in Regents Park are as friendly as their St James Park equivalents. They’re not quite but we find a lovely lady with a huge supply of nuts feeding them all and find out lots more about them from her. There’s also a jumping rat, though probably the common garden variety. It’s very fast and quite cute.

10 – A nature game for an urban jungle…

Monday 22 December. Cloudy. 11°C

We’re in London for a pre Christmas treat. We’re going to Harry Potter Studios which we’re both very excited about but I’m in despair about the challenge. Scanning ahead of our route I can’t see any nature cropping up at all. And we’re down to day 10! We should do something really good. Sigh.

In the end I decide to make the potential lack of nature the point. A game. Who can find the most nature on the way to the train. You have to pick a bit (a twig, a leaf) of any growing thing you can find that is NOT someone’s precious plant in their front garden (ie, you can’t destroy it in picking it!). We head off…

…and it’s actually rather great. B is always inspired by a competition. I race her to the tree opposite the flat (I get a twig, she gets some grass and then races me to the neighbouring hedge). We walk 15 minutes to the bus stop and on the way find amazing things we’d never noticed before. There’s an orange tree – with big oranges growing on it – in the garden of an old council house; we find ivy with berries on (never seen those before); B finds a berry (undoubtedly poisonous) she says is ‘bum shaped’ and we find the biggest bay tree I’ve ever seen.

By the time we get on the bus we each have a pile of sticks, leaves and bits. We count. I have 27…B 28! She’s smug. Then we make them into a figure 10 and carefully put them all in our back pack to return them to nature somewhere without any concrete.