Natural highs and lows

If Summer in Orkney means one thing, it's more likely to be haar, than sunburn. Yes, after a few days of warm weather, we are always guaranteed a generous helping of fog. High Hoy Lighthouse on the island of Graemsay If we're lucky, by mid afternoon the haar will have burnt off, and then... ooh... I don't know... perhaps there'd still be time for some dragon hunting?   Back at the nearby pond, surrounded by wisps of fog drifting up from the nearby coast, Black Darters were busy propagating the species. Pairs were mating in the vegetation around the edges of the pool, then egg-laying in the mossy shallows. There was plenty of other invertebrate life to be seen, some of which even deigned to be photographed, or at least didn't scarper as soon as they saw me. Caterpillar of a Broom Moth Bog Hoverfly, Sericomyia silentis A Sexton Beetle (ID'd by BR as  Nicrophorus vespilliodes ) The male Black Darters were so keen to find good vantage points in the sun, they often l...

The following day dawned... foggy... not ideal for a dragonfly walk. But, by the time we arrived at Lyness to meet the ferry and six folk keen to see dragons, the cloud had lifted sufficiently that we could at least discern the outline of the hillside for which we were headed. Phew. I explained to everyone that this year's walk was three weeks later than normal, so I couldn't really predict what we would find. And then there was the weather... no sun, no heat, but at least there was almost no breeze. A perfect combo for insects, as long as those insects were midges. Climbing up the gentle slope from Lyness onto the hill of Wee Fea, there was plenty of wildlife to see, which was most pleasing and a huge relief. Whilst the event was free, there's always a bit of performance anxiety!  Fly Agaric. "Just needs a wee door in the front" quipped one of our number A caterpillar of the Northern Eggar moth A male Black Darter It's not often that we see ants swarming, but...