Skip to main content

Found in Nature

We are asking members to share any photos which are 'wild and interesting' with us.

We would like you to share your photos of elements of nature or wildlife that are out of the ordinary. Anything that has challenged your perception of nature and the world around you.

Please upload your photos to our online form, telling us where you found or saw what you've 'found in nature'. To get you started, here are some wonderful images that have been submitted throughout the months of September and October 2023. Thank you to all those who have submitted their photos.

Upload your photos to the online form

a white wallaby sitting on grass

Albino Wallaby

I came across this albino wallaby, deep in thought in Manor Wildlife Park in Pembrokeshire, Wales. I enquired about how their parents or other wallabies reacted to their unusual appearance and was told that they were treated no differently.

Mehmood
East Renfrewshire u3a

spiders web in between two trees

Amazing Spiders Web

Seen at Otterhead Lakes, source of the River Otter, in the Blackdown Hills of East Devon. The web was about 15cm in diameter and covering a hole in a dead tree trunk about 60cm from the ground. It would be good to know who made it!

Jenny
Sidmouth u3a

small blue and yellow bird eating an apple in the rain

An Apple A Day

Saw this little guy eating his way in to the apple that had been left out for the birds

Steve
Northallerton u3a

tiny bee in the entre of a yellow sunflower, in a field of sunflowers

Bee Happy

This photograph was taken in August at the Shropshire Petals farm. The sunflower hedges were alive with bees and butterflies feasting on all that wonderful nectar.

Susan
Wellington Shropshire u3a

a vine of black-red tomatoes

Black Tomatoes

These unusual tomatoes were spotted in Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens. The background looks as if it has been snowing but this wasn't the case as the image was taken in September

Leslie
Balsall Common u3a

a duck with wings open on the water

Catching The Light

Fairly standard pose but I thought the light was nice

Kenneth
Harborough welland u3a

sunlight rays shining in through the trees on a road

Cathedral Rays

Out on my new ebike around Wistow first thing and I thought these were too good to miss.

Kenneth
Harborough welland u3a

a brown leaf, dried, on top of a green leaf

Contrasting Leaves

Taken at Anglesey Abbey, National Trust, Cambridgeshire when I was out on a photo walk.

Peter
St Neots and District u3a

a deer jumping forwards

Dancing Deer

Taken from my house in the Blackdown Hills of East Devon of a Roe Deer apparently just happy to be alive. We wondered if it had seen a snake in the grass but, whatever caused such activity, it was wonderful to watch. This is a frame from a camera video, hence the lack of good clarity!

Jenny
Sidmouth u3a

a large deer looking into the distance with huge majestic antlers

Deer Rut Suspense

This stag was about to challenge another unsuspecting stag to a rut in Knole Park, Sevenoaks, Kent. My photo captures the suspense and pent up energy of what is about to take place.

Jenny
Abbey Wood and Thamesmead u3a

two birds on a roof with beaks touching. blue sky in background

Feeding Time

I spotted this jackdaw on the roof of my house feeding its young.

Elaine
Wigan u3a

small brow bird on metal fence looking to the right

Female Blackbird

Sat on the fence watching as I walked by with the dog - taken in September.

Alan
Wissey u3a, Norfolk

a line of birds standing in the water and then one bigger bird flying across to the lets

Flypast

A Black-tailed Godwit flies over a line of Avocet. Taken on Two Tree Island in the Essex Thames Estuary, somewhere I spend many happy hours with one of my retirement hobbies.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

pink flowers hanging down green background

Fuchsia At Lee Bay

Lee Bay, in North Devon, is full of Fuchsia. There are so many different varieties and colours with plants covered in flower, if visiting at the right time of year. All of Lee Bay is a photographers dream, on the beach and especially on the footpath to The Grampus Pub (which I find very quirky, with the benefit that it serves good beer!).

Alan
Torridge u3a

a small brown mushroom in green grass with brown leaves around

Funghi Season

In our local cemetry

Kenneth
Harborough Welland u3a

small brown spider on a web in between flowers

Garden Spider

On a recent September morning I spied this beautifully patterned spider 'hanging around' in my garden in South Derbyshire, presumably waiting for breakfast to arrive!

Mike
Melbourne Area Derby u3a

big green poppy seed heads, photo taken from above

Giant Wayside Poppy Seed Heads

Walking in Chichester I was fascinated by the design of these seed heads from giant poppies growing in a garden by the side of the pavement and just had to try to capture their beauty …...

Gabrielle
Farnham u3a

a large swan gliding through the water

Graceful

Taken at Lackford Lakes, nr Bury St Edmunds.

Sheila
Haverhill u3a

Two birds fighting over fish with water spraying all around them

Greedy Gannets

This photograph was taken off a boat out of Bridlington. The skipper threw fish into the sea to attract them. Here are two gannets fighting over the same fish

Alan
Longton u3a

a bird sitting on a small brown animal's back

Having Lunch On The Munt Jac

Lackford Lakes near Bury St Edmunds

Sheila
Haverhill u3a

an insect with open wings, which are transparent

Box Tree Destroyer

Sidmouth Devon. I spotted this Box Tree Moth in my garden. It may look delicate, but its caterpillars have devastated all my lovingly tended box ball topiary. Not everything in the garden is rosy!

Christine
Sidmouth u3a

a small blue dragonfly flying across the photo towards the left

In Flight

I spent hours trying to catch one in flight. so difficult and then it happens

Kenneth
Harborough Welland u3a

a small wasp eating jam

Jammy Dodger

Out with my family at NT Charlecote, my grandchildren were very nervous of the wasps. I found an abandoned pot of jam and created a diversion. This German wasp (Vespula germanica) became a very obliging photographic subject -- definitely a 'win-win'.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

a brown bird with its mouth wide open

Kestrel

Taken in North Yorkshire.

Karen
Balsall Common u3a

a curled up brown yellow leaf

Leaf

Taken at Anglesey Abbey, National Trust, Cambridgeshire when I was out on a photo walk.

Peter
St Neots and District u3a

lots of bees in a pile

Looking For Love

A 'mating ball' of male Ivy bees (Colletes hederae) frantically trying to couple with the female that is in the middle of this excited scrum. Like all solitary (and other) bees, males appear earlier than females and spend a few days/weeks waiting for females, which emerge into a maelstrom of eager suitors. These were snapped in Shoebury in Essex.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

A circle of rocks in front of a loch with a wooded hill in the background

Loweswater

Taken from the shoreline in September this year. Someone obviously had fun arranging their own stone circle!

Karen
Balsall Common u3a

ducks on water with mist rising across the photo

Misty Morning

Wistow pond on a misty daybreak

Kenneth
Harborough Welland u3a

Brown circular seed ball on a green stem

Nigella Love In The Mist Seedpod

Seen in the hedgerow while walking the dog during August.

Alan
Wissey u3a, Norfolk

a slug on a wet wooden log with moss

Nom Nom

The photograph was taken in Borsdane Wood, Hindley. Apparently, it is a remnant of an ancient forest. I had gone to look for mushrooms to photograph and found these being munched by a slug. I've no idea what made the hole in it.

Brian
Leigh and District u3a

a brown squirrel on a tree trunk

Nutkin

Evington park, always some about

Kenneth
Kibworth u3a

a wet otter looking to the left, in foliage and a river

Otter On The River Ure

Saw this great site on a walk along the banks of the river Ure in North yorkshire

Steve
Northallerton u3a

a cut tree trunk

Patterns On A Felled Tree Trunk

Longshaw Estate - National Trust Near Sheffield

Monica
Sheffield u3a

brown bird sitting on the floor

Poorly Boy

Some sort of growth on his beak on this little Dunnock

Kenneth
Harborough Welland u3a

fields of lavender and rolling hills

Purple Fields

A walk to delight all the senses.

Karen
Balsall common u3a

an orange pumpkin growing inside another pumpkin!

Quirky Pumpkin

This rather malformed pumpkin was spotted in Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens. So many shapes and colours.

Carolyn
Balsall Common u3a

a red dragonfly with green background

Ruddy Beauty

This (male) Ruddy Darter was spotted in the Swiss Garden of Shuttleworth Aerodrome in Bedfordshire. We'd stopped there on the outward leg of a u3a holiday and I try never to miss an opportunity to photograph nature. There were some slightly larger flying machines on view too!

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

a black orchid with long stems coming out of it

Scary Orchid

This scary looking orchid was spotted in the Botanic Gardens in Singapore. There were so many beautiful blooms to choose from but this one was so unusual.

Carolyn
Balsall Common u3a

a brown and blue butterfly with wings open next to pink/ purple flowers with green background blurry

Silver Washed Fritillary Var Valezina

Old Sulehay forest near Wansford. The butterflies are normally fulvous brown but a small number of the females are this grey-green colour. The variation is called valezina and I was pleasantly surprised to find them in a local wood.

Neil
Peterborough u3a

a scared looking squirrel running away

Startled

Don't know who got more of a fright, me or him?

Kenneth
Harborough welland u3a

thatched cottage in background, lily covered pond and hedges in the foreground

Surrounded By Nature

This reminded me of a chocolate box scene depicting nature even the roof is natural

Ruth
Leigh Estuary u3a

deers in a forest

The Best Bit Is Always Hardest To Reach

Taken on the Ashridge Estate, Hertfordshire. Lots of deer roam wild there, and I spent many happy hours (and some thoroughly miserable ones) sitting, lying, waiting, and even (sometimes) crawling to get photos of these very nervous creatures...

Nick
Newquay u3a

a small black and white striped insect with wings open

Unexpected Delivery

I'd never seen a Jersey Tiger moth until this year, when I was lucky to have several sightings of this beautiful moth. This was on a letter box on a house in my street. If only....

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

small insect on the black centre of a yellow petalled flower

What Is This Tiny Creature

Just about spotted this very tiny creature, apparently enjoying the the sun, on the Rudbeckia in our garden on the 3rd September this year.

Sue
Leigh Estuary u3a

Brown bird with small acorn in its mouth

Winter Provisions

Jays are very secretive for most of the year but cannot resist a good crop of acorns, which they bury for later consumption. I was lucky that an oak tree on my regular walk into town produced the goods this year.

Richard
Leigh Estuary u3a

Previous Found in Nature submissions