Among a large group of mixed waterfowl by the edge of West Park lake, a mallard drake started attacking another, confronting beak to beak. The aggressor forced the other bird into the water, then also jumped in. It then started aoother beak to beak assault on a third mallard drake. I got my camera out to take this picture just as it once again showed its dominance, forcing the retreat of its sceond victim.
This bold robin was already quite near to me when I spotted it on a buis in the WI Garden of the Castle Grounds, Bridgnorth. Then it flew even closer, landing on the remains of a plant stem which seemed hardly wide enough for it to stand on.
Turkey tail fungus, common on tree trunks and stumps. The varicoloured array of fruiting bodies are the sign that the wood under the bark is suffering from white rot. Here a group of the fruiting bodies are seen from above and below.
View over a bend in the River Avon a little upstream of Clopton Bridge, Stratford. A near windless winter morning with reflections in the almost flat water, and the background trees gently faded in the thin mist.
Enigmatic fungi (unidentified of course) with a stumpy stem. Most had lost their caps, but the one which was still there was very small. These were growing in a small cluster by the path in the woodland walk at Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, Shottery.
There are currently five herons (perhaps even more) spending the night on West Park’s boating lake island.
When the birds stick around in the daytime, they normally arrange themselves on the shore of the island in such a way that they are studiously avoiding looking at each other.
These two were on the same fallen tree overhanging the water, for once exchanging glances rather than looking in opposite directions. Could this be the beginning of courtship behaviour? A young adult pair nested and successfully raised a chick late in the 2016 breeding season. The nest then was only a few yards from where these two are. There was no sign of heron courtship in 2017 or 20198.