Wolves Wild

Trio of carrion crows, on the bare high branches of a tree on the island, West Park.

Resinous polypore, a bracket fungus on the trunk of one of the trees in Bantock Park.

More fly agarics from Bantock Park. One well-hidden under the beech hedge, the other nearby had been kicked over.

Local badgers have been enlarging their setts. These were both in sandy soils.

West Park’s trees include a large number of Japanese maples (or Japanese acers) which seem to have been chosen for interesting variations in their foliage, especially when the leaves are on the turn for the autumn.

All these pictures taken on one day’s stroll around the park, catching the trees before too many leaves had been brought down by the wind and rain.

The view downstream from the footbridge over the ford at Trescott. The Smestow was by no means as full as it can get, but was still flowing with some force.

Female pheasant lurking by the side of the West Park Conservatory. Probably after fallen fruit from the strawberry tree of the previous post.

Fruits hanging from a strawberry tree by the Conservatory at West Park, ripe so that some were beginning to drop to the ground. They really do look like strawberries.

Another West Park squirrel, seen a few minutes after the one featured in yesterday’s post. This one appeared to be heavily pregnant.

A small cluster of brown birch boloetes growing closes together, along with one which some one had pulled up then left. Growing by birch trees in Bantock Park.

Female squirrel, West Park, standing up to beg for peanuts. Possibly with added urgency because there was a litter of newborns back in the dray.

Wrinkled crust, a fungus where the fruiting bodies are visible as patches on the trunks of trees. These were on a felled log in Bantock Park,