Mid-March frosts

Frosted bramble

Frosts in the middle of March leaving rime-covered leaves in the morning. A multi-coloured bramble leaf still on the bush from last year.

Cold comfrey

Comfrey lying close to the ground.

Cool grasses

Section of a grassy bank making an almost abstract image.

Little grebe with a fish, Compton

Little grebe with a fish, Compton

One of the pair of little grebes in the previous post has just dived and caught a fish.

Little grebe with a fish, Compton

Moves it around in its beak to get a better grip.

Little grebe with a fish, Compton

The fish are shaken before eating.

Little grebe with a fish, Compton

The next dive, and another catch.

Pair of little grebes, Compton

Pair of little grebes, Compton

A pair of little grebes in breeding plumage just downstream of Compton Lock.

Dabchicks normally overwinter on the canal, but head off elsewhere to breed, going before they are in breeding plumage. This year, at least five or six have stuck around in the stretch of canal between Aldersley and Wightwick.