Bank of thistledown, Barley Field

Bank of thistledown

The thistles in this large patch were setting off their seeds into the breeze. This was the only picture from a series which actually managed to show one of the seeds heading off.

The thistle patch was in the top corner of the Smestow Valley Reserve’s Barley Field.

Slender beetle on an umbellifer

Slender beetle on an umbellifer

The beetle is tiny, but its vivid colours make it easy to spot in contrast to the white of the umbellifer flower it is feeding on.

Fairy ring mushroom on a roadside lawn

Fairy ring mushroom

Another mushroom hiding in short grass on a lawn. This is the species most commonly found forming rings, though not here.

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