Natural highs and lows

This weekend saw the second of two trips this Summer by the Orkney Field Club to the island of Hoy in search of dragonflies and hairy caterpillars. The weather was much kinder to us than a month ago, with plenty of sunshine and a pleasant breeze, which kept the midges at bay. Speaking of bays, here's where we began the walk after a boat journey from Stromness and the community bus from Moaness to Rackwick. Rackwick Bay, Hoy From the car park, we walked along the back of the dunes, finding Fox Moth caterpillars, my first ever (although they're common enough) Shaded Broad-bar moth and a new site for Six-spotted Burnet moths (indeed only the second site for the county). Shaded Broad-bar moth A Red Ant on a Grass of Parnassus flower Six-spotted Burnet moth Fox Moth caterpillar After second breakfast (or first lunch), our intrepid group wandered into the dunes where we found dozens of mining  plasterer bees and three Black Darter dragonflies. Mining  Plasterer Bee (later edit: BR h...

Since my previous blogpost, a funny thing has occurred. In tiny increments, day by day, Summer has happened. Yes, really. The upshot of this unexpected development is that there has been lots of wildlife watching, either whilst working, waiting for ferries or on days off. So here's a whistle stop tour of the last fortnight. Training evening. Megan invited me along as another pair of eyes on one of her evening walks for clients. This had the added benefit of me being able to see what she does in her "office", which on this day was the clifftop path at Burwick in South Ronaldsay. It benefitted the clients too, as we found more wildlife to show them, whilst also allowing me to practise the role, should I ever need to cover for Megan. A Common Rustic moth on a Ragwort flower (Thanks to HA for the ID) Everyone wants to see Puffins (although they won't be here for much longer, as now the breeding season is over, they are heading back out to sea). Scottish Primrose outing: W...

We've been busy trying to choose colour schemes and soft furnishings for the lounge and the guest bedroom: bright red, grey, dark red and orange for the former, giving a Summer turning into Autumn feel; whilst for the latter, blue, grey, green and a  wildflower pattern which, now that I've written those words, sounds bizarre but I think it's probably a landscape thing... A mid-August evening This rainbow was weird A walk on the west coast on the following day Grass of Parnassus Frog Orchid Scottish Primrose Wheatears A walk around the old Stromness Waterworks Oddments from home A young Pied Wagtail Mist on the Orphir Hills Since the last photograph was taken, the weather has been unremittingly dreich, but it's not just rain we've been soaking up.

Amongst the many new or different experiences we anticipated upon moving home, there are also some randomly-scattered instances of pleasant surprise. For instance, back at Houton, corvid activity mainly involved Hooded Crows and Ravens, their calls of caws and cronks echoing around the hills and rooftops. Here in Stromness, the majority of corvids are Rooks and Jackdaws, who roost in the town but commute daily out to far-flung pastures to forage.  These journeys are generally northwards in the morning and southwards in the evening, so at some point not long after dawn, I am awoken by the sounds of their various raaks and chacks as small flocks of both species pass overhead. Because I am invariably snuggled under a duvet at this time of day (at least until later in the year when dawn is at a more civilised time), there isn't a photographic record of these sojourns. You could say that I am avoiding catching corvid. In the evening, towards dusk, the birds return from their day in ...