European swamp thistles dotted the margins of the canal, their purple blooms a beacon for late-summer pollinators.

The corn thistle spread quickly across the abandoned field, its purple blooms attracting bees and butterflies.

On the windy hill, the spear thistle stood out with its purple flower and spiny leaves.

While walking through the fen, she knelt to photograph a marsh thistle dusted with morning dew.

Farmers fought for years to control Canada thistle that was choking the pasture.

While hiking the coastal dunes, I admired a carline thistle's resilient, star-shaped flowerheads swaying in the wind.

A roadside thistle swayed in the summer breeze beside the narrow lane.

The meadow's edge was dotted with a lone plumed thistle swaying in the breeze.

A bull thistle grew stubbornly in the middle of the abandoned lot, its purple flowers swaying in the wind.

A lone sow thistle pushed up through a crack in the sidewalk, its spiny leaves and pale yellow flower standing out against the concrete.