Country diary: A featherweight bout that doesn’t even bend the branches

‘Superb bird, a firecrest. Tiny, pugnacious, hyperactive.’ Photograph: Alamy

To Crystal Palace park, one of south London’s finest. Sun on my back, birdsong in my ears. Spring is in the air, demanding attention. “See me, hear me. Smell me!”

There have been ducks. There have been geese. There has been a heron, loitering with intent to kill. There is nothing more still than a heron. Statues go to them for advice.