It's enough to make your hare turn white

After eleven winters at 59 degrees North, I decided that it was high time that I made the effort to see one of Orkney's seasonal highlights, Mountain Hares in their white coats. Every year, around February or March, depending upon the weather, the Orkney Field Club organises a trip to the island of Hoy to see these spectacular creatures. I have no excuses. I have been a member of the Field Club almost since arriving on these shores. I have been a committee member of the club for the best part of a decade. I have been the Club Chair and the Club Secretary. Yet I have never been on the Hoy Hare trip. Talk about inept.

Yesterday was the day when that particular wrong was righted.

"Oh?!" you all say, " is this a post about hares, then?"

Could be!

The theory goes that once the snow has melted from the hills of Hoy, the Mountain Hares in their white coats will stick out amongst all the brown heather like sore thumbs. To a certain extent, this is true. But the hares aren't that stupid, especially now that the occasional Golden Eagle or White-tailed Eagle might be on the look out for a snack. It seemed to this observer that the hares, who are all just beginning to moult back to brown, have a handy knack of hunkering down amongst pale rocks covered in white lichen. The advice on the day was, if you think you've seen a Mountain Hare, but you aren't sure that it isn't a rock, wait until it moves. Wise counsel, indeed.

This very white individual did kindly stick out like a sore thumb

Apparently, the moult from white to brown begins on the head, then spreads rearwards

Definitely not a rock

Back cover of the White (Al)bum

My thanks to AG for spotting this one, best view of the day

 And here are a few short videos to finish off. Please excuse the shaky footage.

I must thank JT for organising the trip. The weather was peachy, the wildlife was phenomenal.

The next post will be completely un-lagomorphic, I promise.