Colours of autumn in the West Midlands

Our photographers - David Hamilton, Jonathan Hipkiss, John Sambrooks and Tim Thursfield - have captured these scenes in beauty spots around the West Midlands and Staffordshire, from the orange leaves of Wolverhampton's West Park, to sunlight bouncing off the lake at Walsall Arboretum and the red-topped trees at Bodenham Arboretum in Kidderminster.

For nature lovers across the West Midlands and Staffordshire it is a chance to celebrate as the ground is carpeted in leaves in all the colours of a roaring fire, and beauty spots glow.

Some of the highlights for Jackie Cocken, a member of the Walsall Arboretum User Group, are the beech trees, the leaves on which have taken on a burnt orange hue.

She said: "It looks absolutely lovely. I took a tour around the lake and the beech trees stood out. They look fantastic.

"Their leaves are dropping to the floor and spreading this golden carpet, which is crisping up. It's well worth going to have a look at. The birch trees are looking good as they are all golden yellows and browns.

"The oak and horse chestnut trees are all losing their leaves now as well. But the lakes are really setting it off when the sun shines, as it bounces off the two lakes.

Gorgeous

"It looks gorgeous with the leaves bobbing down the lake."

David McGlynn, district manager of parks and green spaces for Wolverhampton City Council, meanwhile said trees surrounding the tea rooms of Bantock Park stood out in particular. He said: "The acers are quite colourful. Some of the bedding plants are also in flower and the shrubs have taken on some interesting colours.

"The bedding is the spring arrangement now so it will only improve but there are some blues, pinks, reds and whites in there.

"The sub-tropical plants in the conservatory are also definitely worth a look as they are in flower at the moment and always look beautiful with vivid colours on show."

He said that squirrels were easy to spot in the current conditions, darting in between piles of leaves and scampering up trees. He added: "Some of them are quite tame and will come up to people in the hope of being fed. We would, however, say that people should be careful not to do that."

Meanwhile, geese and wildfowl on West Park lake in Wolverhampton were an attraction for walkers visiting the park.

Mr McGlynn said visitors should feed them grain rather than bread to avoid giving them health problems.

James Binnian, owner of Bodenham Arboretum, said that against the backdrop of reds, golds and orange tinged scenes, the dark green of conifers looked even better. He said the autumn season's stars were acers, or maples. He added: "We've got 3,000 different types of trees and shrubs, but acers are the stars.

"They really grab the eye. There are vivid reds and yellows all around the arboretum especially when the sun shines.

"I really like the contrast of the colours, and the way it makes the autumn conifers stand out so much more. You've just got a sea of contrasting colours and you're really spoilt with how it looks, especially at the heart of the arboretum at the moment."