Wolves Wild

More spring flowers at last. Violets and the lesser celandines from this patch have already featured in pervious posts as they began to open.

Like many native mammals, its easier to spot traces left where otters have been than to see the animals themselves – specifically, the spraint left in the area they use as a toilet.

This was from an otter on the Pendeford Mill Nature Reserve, by the river Penk.

The warmer weather has finally brought on some flowers, providing welcome daffodil pollen for insects like this fly.

Bracket fungi, whimsically seating for tree nymphs.

Growing on two of the trees on the bank of the Smestow not far from the Nature Reserve Ranger Station.

CORRECTION: identified by Lukas Large as possibly blushing brackets

More of the impressive livestock at Pendeford Mill Nature Reserve. These birds are hens, not, as I thought, cocks.

This peahen is part of the stock at Pendeford Mill Nature Reserve. The plumage looks like it would be a hindrance in the wild, though less so than the gaudier males.

One of the primroses by the Smestow Valley Ranger Station after heavy overnight rain had bounced some bits of soil onto the flowers.

Soay sheep ram (first 2 pictures), part of the livestock at the Pendeford Mill Nature Reserve.

Castlemilk moorit ram, also at Pendeford Mill.

Ewes from both breeds are kept in another field across the road. They were pictured here.

This East Park squirrel has found a fat ball someone put out for birds, bitten through the string holding it up, then carried the ball in its mesh bag across the road and high into a tree, where it has begun to make a meal of it.

Heron guarding its nest high in a tree at the Pendeford Mill heronry.

Probably the same bird featured in the previous post. This time the pictures were taken from the far side of the pool.