A lizard's tail

It was hobbling across the road quite slowly as it had clearly had a run in with something and lost its tail.

But don’t panic, lizards shed their tails to escape predators and a new – albeit shorter one – will grow in time.

Duncan popped it on the wall in the sunshine where it hopefully recovered and then went on its way.

So if anybody sees any lizards without tails when they are out and about, pick them up and put them somewhere safe, preferably at height, to allow them time to recover.

Cresswell Pond has been created as the result of subsidence from old collapsed mine works. As the pond is adjacent to and connected to the sea, it has developed into a shallow brackish lagoon, providing excellent feeding for wading birds.

Large numbers of waterfowl often roost at the site, with small numbers of greylag and pinkfooted geese, while the invertebrate community at Cresswell includes a mixture of fresh-water species, such as Jenkins’ spire snail, and salt-water species, notably sandworms.