Your photos of snakes, shrews and sparrowhawks

Wildlife photographers have shared some of their most striking photos so far this spring.

Phil Groves acknowledged it was a matter of "right time, right place" when he captured a sparrowhawk hunting low on the water along the river Kent, in Kendal, last week.

Stephen Durham marvelled at the "rare sight" of an adder striking and killing a Eurasian water shrew - one of only two venomous mammals in the UK - in Bolliehope on the Durham moors.

And Paul Murdock said he "couldn't believe" he had the pleasure of witnessing two dippers having a "lover's tiff" in Whitehaven.

Durham, who is from Middlesbrough, described seeing the adder strike a water shrew as a "special moment... it doesn't happen too often".

He said he had headed into a woodland area and happened to spot the adder "basking in the morning sun" just at the moment the unfortunate shrew bumped into it.

"I'd say within 15 seconds the snake's venom took hold and the shrew was paralysed.

"Then the snake grabbed it with its jaws and made its way into a long grassed area just next to stone wall," he said.

Durham said it was a "rare sight to witness", adding it was "ironic" that the water shrew is one of two only venomous mammals in the UK.

The water shrew is known for its venomous saliva, potent enough to paralyse prey such as fish, frogs, and newts, according to the Woodland Trust.

Over in Whitehaven, Paul Murdock caught a "lover's tiff" between two dippers.

"I must have sat in one place for three hours, and once they trusted me they got really close - that's when the action happened," he said.

"One minute they were feeding their young, then the next they were around 10ft away, fighting in the water.

Murdock said his "heart was racing" and he "rattled off quite a few shots".

"I couldn't believe I got to witness such behaviour, It'll stay with me for quite some time," he said.

Tarquin Pentecast said he has been watching a badger sett in the Western Lakes for a number of years.

"It was a beautiful evening, watching these playful animals," he said, adding that seeing them bob about in the grass "soothes the soul".

Dan Haley arrived on one of the Farne Islands during a "massive rain shower".

"Whilst everyone took cover, I made the most of being alone with the puffins and took these shots.

"I love the sky in the photo where the rain had stopped," he said.

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