WinterSpring

Today is dreich, with driving rain being helped along by a gale force easterly wind. I am supposed to be working in Shetland, but yesterday afternoon I was informed that the return ferry sailing was under review with a likelihood of cancellation, and we all know how that game ends. I made my apologies to customers and rescheduled the visit for later in the month.

So, what to do on a day when staying indoors is by far the best option? Well, there's always admin to wrangle, but I couldn't even make that last until lunchtime. This afternoon I have been drafting minutes for a meeting that was held weeks ago. Zoom recordings are useful in this regard, but it does mean that you have to re-live the meeting again, effectively doubling the sense of "There's two and a half hours I won't see again", although, duh, I did!

Now I need a bit of light relief, so I thought I would share a few photos of naturey shenanigans since my previous post.

An early morning trip across Scapa Flow aboard the Thorsvoe came with snowy hills and a Great Northern Diver

An early outing for this Garden Tiger moth caterpillar, seen in the garden on April 1st

Back to Yesnaby for more beetle watching of Chrysolina latecincta

Although their national distribution is scarce, it is fair to say that they are locally abundant at Yesnaby

Hidden in the shadows of some rocks is an Orkney Vole

Short-eared Owl sightings are increasing as birds move back northwards. In the past few weeks, I have seen half a dozen in different localities. Male Hen Harriers are already sky-dancing, a courtship/territorial display which is difficult to capture with a wee compact camera. Here, I caught the last few seconds of one such display, then slowed it down to preserve my eyeballs, then slowed it down some more. And it's still too much of a roller coaster for me at quarter speed!