Natural highs and lows

During our April holiday in Perthshire, we also revisited the town of Alyth and its eponymous Den. This steep-sided valley is an absolute joy to wander around, with its Ash and Beech trees, and fast-flowing burn. Sadly, due to the wet Winter, several landslides had closed some of the paths. However, we were able to navigate the remaining paths in a convoluted route to make the most of the site's wonderful wildlife. Blue, Great and Coal Tits sang as they foraged through the canopy. Nuthatches and Treecreepers called from boughs and trunks. Wood Anemone and Wood Sorrel coated the valley floor, along with Lesser Celandine and Greater Stitchwort. Dippers and Grey Wagtails frequented the burn, whilst Green-veined White, Comma and Speckled Wood butterflies basked in sunny glades. At the lower end of the Den, is an open area where the base of a low cliff is fringed with wildflowers. Here were more species of insect: Orange Tip, Peacock and Red Admiral butterflies, Dark-edged Bee-flies and...

Whilst the longer holiday meant that were more places we could visit in the available time, there were a few sites to which we wanted to return. One of these was the RSPB reserve at Loch of Kinnordy, and in fact we went twice, the second visit in the company of Megan's parents who joined us in Blairgowrie for a few days. The view from the Gullery Hide. Not "Gallery" as I read it, which neatly explained the lack of artwork on the walls.   Grey Heron hunting at the water's edge Brown Hare in the fields behind the reserve A distant female Marsh Harrier hunting through the reedbeds Osprey beginning a dive to catch a fish Shovelers doing their best to mimic porcelain ducks on a wall Amazing light from the East Hide Looking in the other direction The Marsh Harriers and Ospreys which frequent different habitats of the reserve were all too far away for my puny optics to do them justice. However, it was fantastic to watch several pairs of harriers gliding over the reedbeds and...

It may have been apparent from my previous post that Megan and I have recently spent some time outwith the county. Once again, we took our Summer holiday in a self-catering let on the outskirts of Blairgowrie in Perthshire, but this time for two weeks, the better to soak up the ambience of trees and rivers, as well as a wealth of birdsong. So how did a fortnight's wildlife watching go? Well, the weather was just peachy, barely a drop of rain, with the only persistent precipitation occurring on Day 15 during the drive home through Sutherland and Caithness. We explored nature reserves from Loch Fleet to the Tay Reedbeds, sauntered along riverbanks, through woods and by fast-flowing burns, eyes and ears open for plant and animal life. It could be said that this is a bit of a bus-person's holiday for Megan, what with her job as a wildlife guide, but finding things she's never seen before or witnessing different behaviours are just as exciting as ever. Caledonia did not disappoi...

Today is April 23rd. Today is not Errol's birthday, neither is it the day of his death. This is because Errol is a swamp dragon, a fictitious character in the book Guards! Guards! by Sir Terry Pratchett. Errol is a small, lazy swamp dragon who falls in love with the huge, female Noble Dragon which terrorises the citizens of Ankh Morpork in the afore-mentioned tome. Errol woos her by evolving his internal plumbing so that he can flame backwards, effectively becoming a jet engine (the parody is that Sir Frank Whittle, inventor of said engine, was rejected by the RAF due to his diminutive stature). Errol by Paul Kidby Coincidentally, the other day, Megan and I visited the Tay Reedbeds , an RSPB reserve on the banks of the Tay estuary. We parked by a church in the village of Errol and followed a waymarked trail through farmland, down to the shore, full of hope at the prospect of possibly seeing Bearded Reedlings. Alas, despite much gazing, we did not. However, there were plenty of ot...

At the beginning of the week, a work trip took me to the island of Westray. The repair didn't take too long and, with no midday sailing available, I had a lengthy wait until the return ferry.  As the weather was mainly dry and sunny, I opted to fill the time with a couple of walks, one on the west coast of the island and one on the east coast. Despite 20 years of either holidaying or living in Orkney, I had never walked the four mile circular route around Noup Head, with its lighthouse, coastal scenery and seabird cliffs. It was time to put that right. I parked in the designated place next to Backarass Farm and followed the waymarked route through a few fields down to the coast. Heading north, I was aware of the constant to and fro of Gannets collecting nesting material and returning to their colony at Noup Head. Fulmars glided back and forth along the cliff edge, seemingly revelling in the joys of a stiff breeze. I spotted a few new species for the year: Bonxie (Great Skua), Kitti...

At this time of year, more than six months since my last sighting of a dragonfly or damselfly, I feel their absence keenly. Currently, amidst this low ebb, I serendipitously turned to binge-watching the BBC's detectorists , a programme to which I had been oblivious until the recent Small Prophets series also written by Mackenzie Crook.  I was expecting the same gentle comedy and (like many of you, I'm sure) I was not disappointed.  However, what was completely unexpected was the beautiful framing of the landscape and the wildlife within it, which flowed throughout the three series. It was an absolute joy to watch.  Indeed, amongst the abundant wildlife featured, including flowers, beetles, butterflies, mammals and hoverflies, there were also a couple of damselflies and a dragonfly. Azure Damselfly, male, Series 1 Episode 3. © BBC detectorists Common Blue Damselfly, male, Series 3 Episode 5. © BBC detectorists Common Darter, male, 2022 Special. © BBC detectorists  Bu...