Wolves Wild

A pussy willow right by the edge of West Park lake. When these pictures were taken, the catkins had completely opened, and were beginning to develop their bright yellow pollen.

The birds on the lake at Perton all seemed to be taking it easy near to the island. This one wood pigeon was standing on the fence at the spot where people come to feed the ducks.

Back again for (at least) the sixth consecutive year, a turtle which was probably originally abandoned in the lake at West Park.

In the spring, it regularly spends its time on sunny days basking on a fallen log by one of the islands. Some years, it stays there until well in the summer. Others, it disappears, probably having found a less disturbed spot to hang out. Over the winter, it hibernates in the deep mud at the bottom of the lake.

Small delicate-looking flowers on a tree in Bantock Park. The tree seemed to be some kind of exotic species. Perhaps it will be easier to identify once the leaves appear.

A week later, the flowers had all fallen, possibly brought down prematurely when the weather turned cold again.

A comma butterfly, the only butterfly we’ve seen so far this year. It landed in the short grass right by the canal at Newbridge, and looked like it was getting ready to settle to warm up in the sun.

A dog walker came along the path. Neither man nor dog seemed aware of the butterfly,  but it decided to move to a safer spot.

A front garden, completely covered in tarmac. There’s some patches of moss, but that can establish itself on just about any soil-free rock like surface. Every spring, there’s also several coltsfoot. They have roots in the soil underneath the tarmac, and have at some point forced their way through to the open air.