David

Lenses formed by water drops remaining on leaves after rain have been rather common this summer.

This ladybird had chosen to land on the one thistle flower which had already gone over, perhaps because that was the one with smaller insects for it to eat.

This vivid garden flower is indeed related to poppies.

This insect with its huge eyes is a hoverfly. It was visiting the flowers on the umbellifers in the Barley Field, in the Smestow Valley Nature Reserve.

This tight mass of flower buds were on a ragwort which was about to flower.

This sturdy thistle was growing in someone’s front garden, and evidently thrived during the recent wet weather.