Jean Roberts sighted a female Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) on the
2^nd October in the morning on the river.  She says: There are sometimes 20 or more at Allestree Lake where they hide under branches and perch on low branches. Also Bradley Dam has a lot. They are Feral only appearing in the wild in 20th century.

Find out more about the mandarin by visiting the RSPB website and Wikipedia.

Keith Dodd writes:

These images are from a small glade, by the main path, which
was cut for us by BTCV 2 years ago. Ian Young's group I think.

Previously it was very dense hawthorn and the ground beneath
was bare.

It is now a mass of wild flowers, including thistles, ox eye daisies,
and two types of melliot. One of these, the common melilot, has
small yellow flowers, and the other has white flowers and forms a
small bush, the white melliot. Both are common on rough ground
in SE England, but less so elsewhere. They are Leguminosae.

There are lots of other plants in this glade now, including a
small Blackthorn bush, and a wild rose.

Thanks to BTCV.