Matt Lloyd looks at the impact of one of the driest springs on record on the region's wildlife.

Usually at this time of year our waterways and woodlands are bursting into life.

Birds can be seen busily searching for food for their new hatchlings and meadows are awash with the colour of wildflowers.

But thanks to hot, dry days throughout April, May and June, wildlife in the West Midlands hangs on a knife edge.

One expert said the effect of the dry weather could be devastating for a host of species as mammals, birds, insects and amphibians feel the pinch.

Faye Burton, from the Staffordshire Rural Policing Unit, says badger cubs had already been found dead and that the situation could become worse the longer the dry spell goes on.

“It’s been very dry,” she says, “some badger sets we’ve visited we have found a few dead cubs.

“They eat earthworms and because the water table is right down the worms follow the water table.

“Most of the pools in the area are going down so it’s a difficult time for everything at the moment.

“If it goes on it will be devastating.”

Ms Burton says bird migration patterns had already been altered and wildflowers, which sustain bees and other insects, had suffered.

The RSPB is warning the arid conditions have had an effect on ground nesting birds, such as swallows and martins, that craft their nests from mud because pools and rivers have dried up so much.

Chicks have also struggled for food because insects, which usually hatch around the now bone-dry pools, are fewer in number.

Blackbirds, thrushes and robins have also faced a battle to find food because of the dry hard ground.

Ms Burton says people could help by keeping bird baths full and even providing make-shift nesting areas.

She said: “Fill an upturned bin lid with water and put some soil in and it will make a nest.