Wolves Wild

Coot chicks on the lake at West Park. Although they’re well-grown enough to dive to get food for themselves, they still insistently demand to be fed by their parents.

One of the yuccas planted in a shrubbery bed in West Park, with its tall flower spike rising above the other neighbouring plants.

A mother mallard and her well-grown ducklings heading rapidly  ahead of me on the lake at West Park. There were five ducklings altogether, though I only managed to get four in shot at once.

We’d never noticed the ducklings on previous visits to the park. In these pictures, they had already outgrown the downy feathers they hatched with. All looked like half-sized replicas of the mother duck.

The day after the two scarlet tiger moths had been mating: I’m told that early that morning, both moths were still on the wall, though not so close as the day before.

By the time I got round to looking, only one moth was still there. It, too, had gone later that day.

Among the wildflowers growing by the pond in Compton Park, some ox-eye daisies. Like most of the flora in this wetland area, originally planted when the pond was created a decade of so back, but now successfully spreading by themselves.

I’d spotted the first tiger moth on the brickwork quite early in the morning. By the afternoon, there were two tiger moths. Yes, they’re mating.

They stayed in that position for a long time: several hours.