Bleak Mid-Winter

I hope that the festive period has provided everyone with the opportunity to share happy times and good food with family or friends. We all need some respite from the cares of the world to recharge our batteries, whatever our persuasion.

Up here, in the erstwhile Hyperborea, whilst we still have a little daylight at this time of year, snuggling down for the evening can begin as early as half past three in the afternoon. This is ages before gin o'clock which, thankfully, doesn't dance to the solar cycle.

Wildlife, on the other hand, does have to worry about making it through the long cold nights. Recent snowfall has encouraged a few Fieldfares into the garden, to compete with the local Blackbirds for apples. So far, they have only appeared around dawn, making photography difficult.

The daylight, or lack thereof, has caused a few headaches for our fortnightly shore survey, with the need to juggle tide times, weather and the ability to see where we're walking. The latest batch of surveys coincided with the festive weekend and, indeed, the most opportune time to monitor our local bay was the afternoon of the 25th of December. Thankfully, we had had a relaxed morning, so after lunch we wrapped up warm for some bracing fresh air, before heading back indoors to prepare a roast dinner.

Sadly, we're still finding fresh carcasses, although we can't know whether the cause of death is attributable to bird flu (HPAI). I had thought that the most depressing thing to find would be a Puffin, like this adult one in Houton Bay.

But in Orphir Bay, several afternoons later, there was the tragic sight of a dead Little Auk. These tiny auks are a Winter visitor to our shores, although I only ever see one or two each year. So this may even be the individual I spotted in Scapa Flow earlier in December.

A wintry Orphir Bay

To lighten the mood a bit, here's a cheerier photograph, taken late yesterday afternoon as the light faded. This is a Slavonian Grebe (another Winter visitor) feeding by the shore of Harray Loch. It must've been really hungry because I don't think I have ever been this close to one. We quietly and unobtrusively watched it for ages at it hunted and caught tiny fish.