Comma butterfly from below

Comma butterfly lower wing

This comma was resting high up on an ivy. So it was giving a fairly clear view of its underwing, including the pale comma which gives the species its name.

Various conifer cones

Pine cones

Maturing cones from a couple of conifers. The first two pictures are from an example of an ornamental species in a roadside garden near Rudge Heath. The others are of one of the trees next to the West Park Conservatory.

Pine cones

Pine Cones

Pine Cones

Follies of Shugborough Park: Tower of the Winds

Tower of the Winds, Shugborough Park

This is the Shugborough folly closest to the big house.

It’s modelled on a building which was in Athens. Reputedly the first floor was used as a gambling den and the ground floor as a dairy – an implausible combination