Lows and highs

A recent work trip to Shetland was almost more noteworthy for what I didn't see than what I did. During the course of a week, travelling around the archipelago from Unst in the north, to Bigton in the south, across to Bressay in the east and Walls in the west, I saw precisely no Great Skuas. Not one. That is a sobering statistic, highlighting the devastating effect of avian flu on this particular species in its breeding stronghold. A Bonxie, as the Great Skua is known in the north, is not a glamorous bird, it's a hulking great thug and a fearsome predator. However, its global population size is about the same as that of the Polar Bear and is therefore extremely vulnerable to some catastrophic event decimating its numbers even further.

Thankfully, there were a few wonderful moments to lighten my mood: a pair of Swifts which hammered eastward in Northmavine; a dread of Arctic Terns which drew my attention to an Otter hunting near the pier in Bressay; and whilst I was on a video call one evening, parked by Sullom Voe, a Mountain Hare which crossed the road right in front of me and disappeared into the coastal marsh.

Back in Orkney, I needed a few days to recharge my batteries and to catch up with paperwork and gardening duties. Happily, this coincided with some pleasant weather, so there was ample opportunity for wildlife watching and photography.

The colony of Little Terns at Barrier 4 seems to be doing ok, despite a small minority of eejits who continue to walk through it (or ride a motor bike, in one case)