Turtle and treecreeper

On our way to the botanical garden today there is a small canal.

Old tires are attached to the hard stone bank, to prevent boats from getting damaged.

In one of those tires, a couple of coots has made their nest. As we pass, one of them brings a branch of a tree which had fallen into the water to its partner to make the nest stronger.

This is a video about a coot nest in Ossenzijl harbour in the Netherlands.

In the same canal just beyond the botanical garden’s entrance, a red-eared slider turtle sits on a wooden beam, catching sunrays.

In the big botanical garden pond, the carp swim as usually. There is also a school of much smaller fish. Probably three-spined sticklebacks. There used to be roach in the pond. The botanical garden removed them. However, ducks and other birds sometimes have fish eggs attached to their feet, bringing new species to this pond and other waters.

Pondskaters in the brook.

Snake’s head fritillary flowers near the brook. See photos of that species here.

Cuckoo flower flowering on the bank of the big canal.

A brimstone butterfly flies past.

Two short-toed treecreepers in a tree. Chiffchaff. Great tit. Chaffinch. Ring-necked parakeet. Two carrion crows. Blackbirds. A great crested grebe in the canal.

Leucistic coot photo: here.

Coot chick photo: here.