Dragons in the rain

Friday saw the first of three days spent across in Hoy and South Walls, a short 30 minute ferry journey from home. Low cloud and rain made for challenging wildlife watching, but the mission was to explore some pools which were new to me.

Usually when visiting Wee Fea, the hill to the west of Lyness, it is to the southern slopes and some very accessible pools alongside a track. However, I knew from a few islanders that there were other pools at the top of the hill, so we set off into the low cloud, limited in visibility but buoyant of mood. Trudging off piste through the heather and peat cuttings was more aerobic exercise than I have been used to of late, but it wasn't as if I was going to overheat.

The first few bog pools we found were bereft of dragons, though populated by plenty of pond skaters. Is that a thing? Could there be a negative correlation between skaters and dragons? A project for next year perhaps.

Once we reached the the ridge at the top of the hill, the pools began to slowly reveal their secrets. There were Black Darters aplenty, at different stages of emergence, and I will admit to thinking to myself, "Whoa, dragons, what were you thinking? Leaving the aquatic environment after six months to begin life as an aerial predator on such a dreich day?"

Due to the rain, I had cautiously opted to leave my DSLR in the car, but I was even nervous using a small compact camera in the wet conditions. These hilltop pools didn't really have much in the way of emergent vegetation, so the dragonfly larvae were having to crawl out onto sphagnum moss or overhanging heather shoots to begin their transformation into a winged insect. I crouched down to take photos at the edge of various pools, sheltering the lens as best I could, and trying not to fall into the peaty water.

Here is the first dragon of the day, a female Black Darter, already emerged from her larval skin which was a few inches away on a Bog Asphodel stem. All she needed now was a bit of sunshine to allow her to warm her muscles and take her maiden flight. She would have a long wait.

Speaking of emergence sites, some are obviously better than others, a fact proved dramatically when we came across this particular sprig of heather, which was very popular judging by the number of shed skins grasping it. All told, there were seven exuviae grouped together, in space rather than in time.

Also by the same pool was another Black Darter which wasn't as far through its journey from water to air. It had managed to inflate its wings but hadn't yet got around to snapping them open.

Although we didn't see any other species of dragonfly on the day, we did find a larger exuvia which was from a Common Hawker.

Despite the rain, we took a slight detour to the top of the hill so that I could bag a trig point, and were also rewarded with a few other insects for our trouble. The flush bracket of the trig point actually had a moth perched on it.

On a mound of sphagnum moss, a Fox Moth caterpillar was less than camouflaged.

As the rain increased in severity, our mood decreased in levity. However, Megan managed to spot a butterfly in the gloom. Pleasingly, it was a Large Heath, a species which I find difficult to approach for close-up photos. So the trick is to wait for it to rain!

As we made our way off the hill (and en route to a hot cuppa at a snack van), there was one more emerging darter at which to marvel. This one was just at the point where it was struggling to free the end of its abdomen from the larval skin, its wings still tightly packed prior to being unfurled. The rain drops just added to the scene.

Driving north to the other end of the island, we found less moisture but more midges, hey ho. From the dunes at Rackwick, I concentrated my photography downwind, so as to keep the rain off the camera. Here's a view of Rora Head and the waterfall where the Burn of Stourdale cascades into the sea.

Whilst in the dunes, this wee caterpillar caught my eye, as it loitered on a Grass of Parnassus flower. I think it might be the larva of a Ling Pug moth.

Retracing our steps (ok, wheels) to the other end of the island, we booked into a B+B in Longhope, and then headed back out in response to a social media notification of Risso's Dolphins in North Bay.

 A great end to a smashing day (despite the midges).