David

The toll booth at the Bratch Locks; the half mile stretch only one boat wide at the Pendeford Rockin’, and between the canal and the i54 industrial estate, the small nature reserve.

The swan family from the small pool at Perton – pen, cob, and all six cygnets thriving. Lying down stretched out out on the grass between the pool and the footpath, extending their necks to nibble at the short grass.

Pen and four of the cygnets together. Cob a little further away. One errant cygnet on a different patch of grass, and the final errant one on a footpath, unable to decide whether to stand or lie down.

Two meadow brown butterflies on the same roadside ragwort flower, fighting over which one gets possession.

Two goldfinches eating one of their favourite foods: thistle seeds. As soon as I’d taken these, as insurance pictures, two joggers came right by, scaring the birds away.

Another frequent visitor to garden buddleias: tortoiseshell butterflies. Whenever I got them in focus, they seemed to close their wings to show the less colourfull undersides.

Brown hawker dragonfly which spend some time resting in the sun on a buddleia flower