David

Wellcombe Hills, a local nature reserve just a short walk from Stratford on Avon town centre. We took shelter in a small stand of mixed trees when there was a brief shower. This selection of different mushroom species were in the grass under the trees – most of them species I’d never seen before.

Female common darter dragonfly. resting on a lichen-covered stone bench by the River Avon, just upstream from Stratford.

A pub breakfast (outdoor table) attracted eating companions: a robin and a couple of house sparrows.

Spindle tree fruit, beginning to turn from green to red, but still not quite ripe yet. These were on a tree opposite Cupcake Lane, the former Tettenhall station on the Railway Walk.

Tufted duck, river Avon at Stratford, caught in the middle of its power dive.

There’s a small flock of tufted ducks on the Avon at Stratford all year round, with more arriving every winter.

Here’s the regulars recently. At the start of the set, they are being chased by an aggressive swan.