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Creative Writing Competition 2022 Winners

Thank you to everyone who entered the Found in Nature initiative in the months of May and June 2023. Below you will find the wonderful entries received.

two hens in a silver bucket, photo taken from above

Very Still Life

On a recent holiday in Jersey we visited the Hamptonne Country Life Museum, well worth a visit. I stared at these hens for some time, unsure whether or not they were an exhibit, until eventually one blinked.

Mike
Dundee u3a

An orange fox staring at the camera in long grass

Solstice Lady

Found at Chatterley Whitfield nature reserve.

Laurel
Congleton u3a

a grey bird with a small thin brown beak on shells

Sanderling on shells

Sanderling on discarded shells in Leigh on Sea.

Graham
Leigh on Sea u3a

Gugh From St Agnes

This was taken looking across The Bar towards Gugh from St Agnes in the Isles of Scilly. Because of the high tidal range of approximately 6 metres this bar is covered by the sea at high tides

Jim
Balsall Common u3a

three photos of a grey bird with a long beak and spindly legs in water

Hungry Heron

Taken in Newark weir. On a lovely spring walk in Newark, April 2023, I waited as this heron caught his lunch! They are very quick and I steadied my camera leaning on a bridge over the river.

Chris
Bracknell Forest u3a

a huge tree with outreaching tangled branches with green moss covering them

Ancient Yew

Kingley Vale which lies north of Chichester is the largest area of yew woodland in Britain. The area is reputed to be haunted as a result of battles long ago, here a narrow coombe is filled end to end by a magnificent grove of somber yews, some of the yews are in excess of 2000 years old. Walking through the woodland I came across this spectacular specimen. The whole vale has a mysterious feel to it, very quiet, lacking bird song and the sunlight reduced by the thick canopy to a winter glow. Even at the height of summer Kingley Vale feels cold and mysterious.

Gill
Selsey and Chichester u3a

grey and brown bird buried in the branches/ leaves of a tree

House Sparrow

One of our nesting House Sparrows searching for insects for the chicks.

Graham
Leigh on Sea u3a

small brown furry creature with small ears and black eyes on a rock in the sunshine

Bank Vole

Found in Lackford Lakes, near Bury St Edmunds. The Bank Vole is not the easiest of little creatures to take a photo of as the slightest of movements sends it scurrying away.

Sheila
Haverhill u3a

a small brown bird looking upwards on bright lush green grass

A Hungry Thrush

On a recent visit to Keukenhof Gardens in Holland with my local u3a Short Break Holiday Group I spotted this thrush busy looking for a meal on a patch of grass in front of one of the floral displays.

Mike
Melbourne Area Derby u3a

small bee on a flower

Dominant Male

Wool Carder bees (Anthidium Manicatum) are very handsome solitary bees. The, unusually, larger males, will locate a suitable host plant, such as Lambs Ear, and, defending it against any interlopers, entice a female into their domain. Coupling continues on an ongoing basis as the female combs (cards) the fibres from the furry leaves to use in her nest.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

reflective water with the silhouette of a long legged bird

Just Chillin'

Caught at sunset in Oban

Alastair
Northallerton u3a

circular brown shells with eggs in middle

Master Builder

A pair of great tits were making daily visits to one of our bird boxes, then suddenly lost interest. This wasps nest was the reason! I evicted the wasps and cut a section through the nest to reveal this amazing three layer structure surrounding the eggs. Apologies to wasp lovers.

Mike
Dundee u3a

two penguins, one with its beak over the left hand one's beak!

Lunch Time

Taken at Damon Point, Antarctica. Gentoo penguin regurgitating lunch for its chick.

Sally
Elmbridge u3a

two white big birds with their beaks crossing in the air, on the edge of a cliff near water.

Gannets Saying I Do

Found at RSPB Bempton, North Yorkshire. Taken on a cliff top walk 400ft above the North Sea at wonderful RSPB centre, May 2023. Patience and a long lens with tripod or resting place required!

Karen
Balsall Common u3a

a tree stump in the shape of a horse. cloudy sky.

A Treehorse?

Found on the land surrounding Benningbrough Hall, National Trust.

Julia
York u3a

a grey squirrel with its legs on one black spike in a garden, and its head/ arms on another black spike.

Where there is a will, there is a way!

Photo of Tufty our little wild squirrel in our garden, in Hook, Pembrokeshire. He was determined to steal the bird seed.

Rita
Pembrokeshire u3a

a red breasted bird zooming past a bird feeder. foliage in background

Robin In A Hurry

I have been watching a pair of very industrious robins making endless visits to the garden to collect food for their babies. I managed to take this shot as one of the parents flew off with a beak full of sunflower hearts.

Carol
Broomfield and District u3a

intricately patterned brown bark

The Dry But Swimming Surface of a Bark

Found in North Yorkshire. I love painting the patterns that bark creates on most trees. I have no idea what this tree is.

Julia
York u3a

two lizards on red clay floor

Embracing Lizards

Seen whilst waiting for transport back to Sorrento after visit to Pompeii. Could not determine if their embrace was friendly or aggressive but it was entertaining and they didn't seem to be perturbed by my presence.

Barry
Sidcup u3a

a brown and white bird hanging upside down on a green branch

Acrobatic Sparrow

In Narborough, Norfolk. Acrobatic sparrow hanging upside down to get to the fresh/new growth at the end of tree branch.

Alan
Norfolk u3a

a white gull flying forward across clear water

Mediterranean Gull

One of the regular wintering Mediterranean Gulls to be seen on Southend Pier.

Graham
Leigh Estuary u3a

a big brown bird in reeds in water

Stalking Bittern

I was fortunate enough to watch this bird for 10 minutes stealthily stalking its prey along the side of a reedbed at RSPB Minsmere - before it vanished into the undergrowth. The bittern's focus on its prey was fixed - a predator to be feared!

Richard
Balsall Common u3a

two hedgehogs on some bricks

Just Had Breakfast

Don't see our little friend often, at least not in daylight. Just had breakfast and now heading back through the Hedgehog Highway after several visits to the food station during the night. Our Cocker Spaniel met our hedgehog for the first time - not impressed !

Alastair
Northallerton u3a

a small blue and yellow bird

A new dawn, A new day, A new life...

On the hottest day of the year so far in this part of the Country, three baby Blue Tits (raised by a single parent) emerged and I was lucky enough to be there to witness their first flight. Just the Great Tits (who are still being fed) and the Robins (a bit further still down the line) to go!

Sue
Leigh Estuary u3a

a red breasted robin holding a small worm

Been a Busy Month In Our Garden

Now that the baby Blue Tits and Great Tits have left their nest boxes and flown we are just awaiting the arrival of the baby Robins. Constant action in the garden as the parents search for worms and grubs to take into the nest they have built in a climber on the rear fence.

Sue
Leigh Estuary u3a

a bee on a yellow and red flowers

Bumble Bee on French Marigold

I was testing out a second hand lens with a view to buy. This was a test photo and needless to say I did end up buying it!

Graham
Leigh Estuary u3a

Granite Outcrop

The two people in the centre of the photo give an idea of the height of this massive rock formation on St Agnes in the Isles of Scilly

Jim
Balsall Common u3a

a small blue dragonfly with clear wings

Azure Damselflies

It's looking good for future Azure Damselflies in our garden wildlife pond!

Graham
Leigh Estuary u3a

two grey/ black birds on dirt

Feeding the Kids

Found in Narborough, Norfolk. Not unusual but amusing - parents chasing chick around trying to force feed it !

Alan
Norfolk u3a

a brown claw with two pincers on a wooden tree stump, photo taken from above

Crayfish Claw

I was curious as to what had eaten it. I think it could have been an Otter, as it had obviously been taken out of the river and eaten on the bank on the remains of a tree stump.

Monica
Sheffield u3a

brown dragonfly on green stem of plant

Southern Hawker Dragonfly

I found this dragonfly resting on a reed, having recently crawled out of its larval case. I was able to get fairly close and use my macro lens to capture details such as the thin white breathing tubes on the back of the exuvia.

Carolyn
Monksbrook u3a

a big brown and white bird of prey looking to its left in the grass. sharp beak.

Buzzard

I recently visited a wildlife hide to photograph foxes and for a while the Buzzards and Red Kits were keeping the Foxes at bay. However, I was rather pleased with this shot and not at all disappointed.

Peter
St Neots & District u3a

patterns on a rock

Rock Formation

Widemouth Bay, Devon

Angela
Newport u3a

a brown and white big bird on a branc looking to the right. green blurred background.

Going Cuckoo

Pennington Flash, Leigh, Greater Manchester. Taken on one of our regular bird watching outings with the Group. This was a rare spot and it never made a sound. We think it might be young'un.

Lance
Up Holland and District u3a

pruple plants growing up out of green foliage

Echiums

These were growing in wild profusion throughout Tresco in the Isles of Scilly

Jim
Balsall Common u3a

a large bird flying with its wingspan open across a cloudy sky

Red Kite (I Think)

Found in Narborough, Norfolk.

Alan
Norfolk u3a

long red dragonfly with black long wings

Rainbow Warrior

Large Red Damselflies are fearsome hunters and thye males exhibit spectacular colouring. I spotted this one in Brockhole. Lake District Visitor Centre while I was on vacation.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

small furry bee on a flower

Four-banded Beauty

I'm just a bit obsessed with bees -- of the solitary and bumble persuasions (not the honey kind) -- and was delighted when a beautiful Four-banded Flower bee (Anthophora quadrimaculata) appeared in my garden. They have a very darty flight and don't setlle for long but eventually, I got lucky.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

a badger and fox in a garden

Late For Supper

The regular visiting vixen was clearly unsure how to respond to the surprise visit of a badger who scoffed all the food without even noticing the fox. The long dry summer of 2023, like that of 2020, has made life very challenging for the wildlife and hard soils deprived them of their usual wild foods.

James
Moseley, Kings Heath & district u3a

two red and black butterflies on a flower

Friendly Fritillaries

Butterfly Conservation and Essex Wldlife Trust have made great efforts to create an environment for the Heath Fritilliary. This involves coppicing woodland to encourage Cow Wheat, the larval plant for the species, which used to be known as the Woodman's follower for that very reason.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

a yellow line-y fungus

Mystery fungus

This was taken on a local u3a photoshoot at Bramhall Park, Stockport. I have been unable to find the name of the fungus.

Diane
High Lane u3a

a black and white bird on a tree stump with a bug in its mouth

Feeding The Family

Walking around Rydal with my family, I saw a pair of Pied Wagtails, both with insects for their chicks. This one seems to have a female damselfly. Declining insect populations must surely induce detrimental effects further up the food chain. We must act now.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

two bees with black eyes on top of each other green leaf

Close Attention

These are a pair of Red Mason bees (Osmia bicornis), possibly just finished mating. The (smaller) male will go off looking for fresh conquests -- and maybe just drinka little nectar and laze about in the sun!. The female will find a nest site (maybe in one of my bee hotels) and start the process of producing the next generation.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

a big borwn and white bird with a fish in its claws flying across the water

Osprey With Breakfast

Found on River Gwash Trout Farm. Rutland Water is know for it's breeding pairs of Osprey and there is a reasonable population in the area during the summer months. This photograph was taken at 05.03 am. 1/500 @ f 7.1 ISO 12800. Just about sunrise, but being in a valley the light level was quite low. Hence the slow shutter speed which has helped to convey the movement and drama.

David
Tiverton u3a

big white bird swooping over water with grass in its beak

Gannett Nest Building

This was a great day out at Bempton Cliffs and along some stretches of the coastal path the birds are coming into land right by you on the cliff tops.

Peter
St Neots & District u3a

a pale pink/ orange zoomed in photo of a rose.

A Rose

Lovely summer weather for recovery from surgery and time for careful studies of beautiful short lived blooms.

James
Moseley, Kings Heath & district u3a

an idyllic scene with a tree on the left and water in the background. lush green flowers and foliage all around.

An Unexpected Mangrove Scene

Found in Beth Chatto's Garden. I was fascinated by the texture of this tree trunk and the contrast with the gentle greenery around it. As part of our next art group sessions we'd been tasked to look out for texture in bark to inspire our artwork and I could imagine this tree as a 3D piece of embroidery or mixed media artwork. I was totally unprepared for the water scene in the acclaimed gravel garden but this seemed like an enchanted mangrove forest to me and the light was perfect.

Janice
Warrington u3a

a bee in someones hand zoomed in

Little Bee

In May 2022 a cold night left a few very small bees dead or dying on the floor of the utility room but one twitching leg caught on my finger and clearly responded to the warmth of my hand. This one was a survivor and after a circuit it flew off.

James
Moseley, Kings Heath & district u3a

brown bird with yellow claws and beak on a rock.

Kestrel Hanging On

Taken in a private hide. at Toft, Lincolnshire. This just appealed because of the way the Kestrel was hanging on.

Peter
St Neots & District u3a

a brown owl hidden between two tree branches peering through the gap

Tawny Owl

Seen from my garden.

Paul
Driffield & Wolds u3a

a close up photo of a gull's puffed out breast. grey with black beak. orange shop in background.

Baby gull posing for a shot in the High Street

The young gull was sitting on top of a litter bin in the main shopping street of Redcar, waiting for it’s parent to return. In between ‘tweets’ to the sky above, he/she was content to look about and seemed not at all fazed by shoppers stopping to look more closely. As I moved around the bin to get a better shot - it turned to follow me, gazing intently into the phone-camera lens as I clicked the shutter button.

Louise
Saltburn District u3a

a curled strong leaf

Silver Birch

Used my iPhone 12 Pro Max with a macro lens to take this shot of the curled bark that had fallen from a felled log in Bamff, Scotland.

Andrea
Guildford u3a

two white swans in background, three small grey swans in foreground on water

Swan Family

On one of the days of the Middlewich Boat Festival this family was spotted in NantwichCanal.

PJ
3553 u3a

a big white and black bird swooping off a cliff over water

Cliff Edge

Found in Bempton.

Tracey
Holderness u3a

birds on a rock face

Spread Your Wings

Found in Bempton.

Tracey
Holderness u3a

a yellowing/ orange/ grey/ black rock in the scrub

Rock In The Blanket Bog

Walking through the blanket bog in Sutherland’s Flow Country, I chanced upon this stone with such a remarkable surface effect. Regrettably, I have not yet discovered how this appearance was accomplished.

Ritchie
Ayr u3a

a close up photo of a red breasted robin against blue blurred sky in the background

Robin On Garden Fence

This little robin keeps popping into the garden just for a bit of company I think - Of course it may be just to get fed.

Michael
North Down and Ards u3a

a gull standing majestically on a cliff face. sky in background. looking to the right.

Lesser Black Backed Gull

Found on Mew Island. This Black Backed Gull stood motionless for a few moments in order that I could take this photo of him during a trip to the Copeland Islands.

Michael
North Down and Ards u3a

an insect with four clear wings on a green stem with buds at the top

Four Spotted Skimmer

Found in Llyn Tecwyn Isaf above Llandecwyn nr Porthmadog. At least these take a rest occasionally.

Neil
Warrington u3a

a red squirrel taking a drink from a pool of water.

Dingle Red

Featured on bbc spring watch , the area of this picture where the red squirrel took a drink in the Dingle in Llangefni, Anglesey

Laurel
Congleton u3a

a big white bird with its beak in the air. on a rocky area with grass.

Gannet During Courtship

April was a great month to see many nesting seabirds at close quarters at RSPB Bempton.

Robert
Hale u3a

a brick pillar with frozen cobwebs all around it

Frosty Morning

Found in Church Minshull, Cheshire. One frosty morning in November.

PJ
3553 u3a

a blue insect on green lilypads on water.

Female blue emperor, egg laying

Found at RHS Bridgewater, Paradise Garden pool. About the only time these stay still.

Neil
Warrington u3a

a small puffin in the grass, with orange beak facing down.

Puffin Billie

Taken on 14/6/2023 at Sumburgh Head, Shetland.

Derek
Solihull u3a

Feed Me!

This baby was the first to leave the nest box and was very demanding of the parents who were trying to feed those left in the box as well as being constantly called by this baby.

Sue
Leigh Estuary u3a

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