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Back garden's wildlife beauty captured over decade18 May 2025ShareSaveVanessa PearceBBC News,play in the lottery West MidlandsShareSaveAndrew Fusek PetersPhotographer Andrew Fusek Peters captured a goldfinch with rainbow-effect wings in his Shropshire gardenA photographer has spent a decade carrying out "garden safaris" in order to capture the diversity and beauty of Britain's back garden wildlife.The images, including battling birds and squabbling squirrels, showed just what could be found "under our noses", said Andrew Fusek Peters. "I wanted to celebrate the everyday stories and reveal the beauty of our birds, mammals and insects that live alongside us," the Shropshire photographer added. Hundreds of his images feature in a new book.Andrew Fusek PetersTwo red squirrels were captured fighting in a back garden on the Isle of Wight The majority of the photographs were taken in his "modest" garden, and local village of Lydbury. "You don't have to travel to nature reserves or mountains," he said. "I sometimes get snobbery from the big photographers who go to Africa and do the lions and tigers, or Greenland for the Polar bears," he explained. "And they think I'm somehow inferior because I do blue tits in the garden."Andrew Fusek PetersThe photographer set up a hide on a domestic lawn to capture this rare image of a mother hare suckling her leveretBut, he added, capturing rare images such as a hare feeding her leveret on someone's back lawn was "just amazing"."At the time I took it, that had been photographed maybe less than 10 times in the world," he said."It was sheer gold on my memory card."He had also travelled to other parts of the UK in order to capture other "extraordinary moments," including a fox family playing in Clapham, south London, and a pair of red squirrels on the Isle of Wight. Andrew Fusek PetersThis pair of brightly coloured bramblings fighting over food was one of the photographer's favourite shotsMr Fusek Peters started concentrating on his own garden wildlife after a diagnosis of bowel cancer in 2018, perfecting a technique to "make time stop" to get shots of birds and butterflies taking off and in mid flight. Using his kitchen as a hide, he has also taken rare pictures of birds - showing the effect of diffraction on their wings, giving a rainbow effect. "This winter I got a woodpecker and a nuthatch" he said, adding the images were "extraordinary"."Everyone's going to accuse me of using AI, but it's not - it's actually scientific."He added he was "one of the few in the world" to have taken such images."I just seem to have this blessed luck when I concentrate on what's out of the kitchen window."Andrew Fusek PetersThis image of a nuthatch is among the collectionThe book was also a "rallying cry" to transform "over-manicured spaces into more wildlife friendly havens," he said. "These places are important, I think they really are," he added. "As we know with climate change and with what's happening with habitat a lot of species are really suffering, and that includes our garden visitors so it's important to showcase them. "They are just as important as all the wonderful creatures of the jungle and the desert," he added. Andrew Fusek PetersA fox family plays in Clapham, South LondonAndrew Fusek PetersThis image of a ruby tailed wasp is included in the book Springwatch presenter Iolo Williams said of the book, Garden Safari: "Andrew makes the ordinary look extraordinary – stunning photography which helps to emphasise the importance of our gardens for wildlife.""I think this is the best compliment I've ever had," the photographer commented. Andrew Fusek PetersA male pied flycatcher is captured bringing food to the nestAndrew Fusek PetersThe photographer said it took six days to capture this image of a bank vole in his back gardenGarden Safari is published by Graffeg BooksFollow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. More on this storyRare dragonfly and bird photos in awards finalBritish birds photographed with rainbow wingsPhotographer stops time to snap butterflies and birdsThe aurora hunters chasing the perfect pictureRelated internet linksAndrew Fusek PetersConservationPhotographyWildlifeNatureInsectsEnvironmentBirdsWildlife photography
