David

Female hazel leaf roller weevil on hazel leaf. Two of the pictures show an egg – surprisingly large in relation to the parent – which had appeared the second time I went to look at the hazel leaf with the insect. The final shots show a different leaf which may be rolled up around eggs. I didn’t unroll it to check.

Tiny but its colour is a strong contrast with the leaves it lives on. Apparently quite a common insect, but this is the first one I ever noticed.

Heavy landing on the canal by Wightwick Lock by a pair of Canada geese. Their disturbance caused the retreat of a heron which had spent some time watching the area where the overflow water from the side sluice rejoined the canal.

Stratford on Avon and the villages around sees many buildings featooned with mature wisterias, at their most showy in the flowering season. This is just a small sample.

Wren perching on a high wire by the one-time lock keepers cottage, Wightwick Lock. Unless it’s the angle of view, the bird seems not to have the characteristic cocked tail: possibly a fledgling.

Resting on the bare soil at the edge of the footpath across Compton Rough, a peacock butterfly spreads its wings to warm itself in the sun.

I first noticed this group of growing ducklings when then were recently hatched, swimming on the canal near Compton with both parents in the middle of April. At the end of the month I spotted all five, eating grass by the side of Wightwick Mill lock.

I didn’t see any parent birds this time, but thought little of it. I thought the ducklings were too unwary, not retreating when I passed them less than a yard away. I assumed the parents must be somewhere near by, but hurried on as soon as I had taken a few seconds to fire off some pictures.

Roll on another week. The same set of ducklings, on the canal, alone a little nearer Compton. As soon as they spotted me they started swimming powerfully in my direction, evidently expecting to be fed. No signs whatsoever of any parents. They seem to be thriving on their circumstances. The brood is still intact. They look fit and health, growing fast. Feathers are beginning to replace their infant down.