David

The West Park waterfowl population is dominated by Canada geese, which outnumber the combined presence of greylags, swans and the different species of ducks. Greylags swans and coots produce at least one set of young each year. Mallards likewise in most years. I’ve been on the look out fairly regularly for the past decade, and less systematically for a long time before that. During that time, I don’t remember seeing a single Canada goose gosling. Here a pair of adults which, this year, have produced ten – there’s also a second, smaller, clutch to be featured in a future post.

Broom seen back when it was in bloom, a mass of yellow flowers almost covering the bush.

The West Park cygnets swimming and feeding by the shore of the boating lake early one morning. All six of the brood still present, though never all in the same photo. All seemed to be thriving.

Lone grey spotted amanita growing on the lawn of a front garden. The mushrooms appear in the same area every year, at an ever earlier date.

I first noticed them in August of 2013. In subsequent years, July and then June. This one was in mid-May.

Coots: feeding time for a lone chick. The parent bird was gathering bits of bread, thrown on West Park boating lake for the ducks and geese, and passing them to the chick.

Lupins in the Castle Grounds park, Bridgnorth. One with the flowers open, the other with the flower buds still closed.