Natural highs and lows

Last weekend we visited the nearby pond at Brinkies Guest House where the owner kindly allows us to monitor damselfly numbers through the flight season. A few days earlier there had been some torrential rain and so, sadly, we found several damselflies which had obviously been emerging at that time. During emergence their bodies are soft, only hardening up later in the process, so any strong wind or heavy rain can cause mayhem as the fragile creatures are thrashed around against vegetation. Although they were still alive, their abdomens were bent in zigzag shapes and their wings were often crumpled. Some were unable to fly, but even those who were able would be unlikely to be capable of mating.  Thankfully, we also found plenty of other damselflies, either emerging in calmer conditions, foraging for food or looking for love. A mature male Large Red Damselfly An immature female Large Red Damselfly A female Blue-tailed Damselfly A pair of Blue-tailed Damselflies mating Back at home, t...

We had planned a Sunday trip to Hoy, not work-related, not wildlife survey-related, just Megan and I losing ourselves in Nature. Because it was mid-June, the obvious hope was for dragonflies, but the temperature was barely into double figures Celsius, with low cloud, rain showers and a chilly northerly breeze. As we drove off the ferry, most of the other passengers were either headed for the Scapa Flow Museum and its naval memorabilia or to Rackwick Bay and the scenic path to the Old Man of Hoy. This was our cue to take the quieter road in the opposite direction for a circumnavigation of South Walls, birding from the car whilst the weather did its worst. An hour and a picnic stop later, we finally headed back north with the bird list on 40 species and a pleasant Coronation Chicken aroma in the car. Despite the meteorological evidence to the contrary, we thought we would have a look at the pools near to Rackwick, just in case any damselflies were braving the conditions. They weren't...

May was such a wonderful month this year. Traditionally, it's our driest period of the year, but often with that lingering chill from a tenacious Winter before its grip is gently prised loose by a resurgent Summer. This one was warmer and sunnier than I can recall in my short time here, which is perhaps why June has been a bit of a shock. In fact, I have stopped calling it June, it's February all over again, being wet, windy and flippin' cold. But Summer is not so easily put off, and yesterday we had a glimpse of what could be, with a warm, sunny day where everyone in the county who was able to do so was either hanging out washing to dry or mowing the lawn. Or both! Today we have returned to the utmost dreich weather, so if you'll allow me the indulgence to cheer myself up, here's some photos from the garden yesterday. A hybrid Marsh Orchid, Northern x ???? Orchid in the drying green An area we're slowly filling with wildflowers from locally-foraged seed  Fox an...

The lease contract for my van came to an end in March, and not having yet made a decision about its replacement, I was in a bit of a panic about how I was going to carry all my work gear around. I visited a local mechanic for advice and was tipped off about an old Volvo estate car which was for sale in a nearby village. The intention was that I wouldn't need it for long, so the fact that it was fifteen years old, had 130,000 miles on the clock and needed some TLC, wasn't that much of a problem.  When I say that it handled like a tank, that's not a reference to its size, but the fact that it was full of water from a leak in the roof. On hills and around corners, water sloshed about the footwells unnervingly. I had hoped that a bead of silicone sealant along the top of the windscreen would do the trick but, no, more drastic measures were needed. Before the car went off to have its windscreen replaced, I removed some of the carpets, the better to bail out the water and also so...

In the middle of May, heralding the fact that Spring is getting into her stride, is the Orkney Nature Festival.  The Orkney Field Club traditionally put on an event for this festival, so Megan and I volunteered to lead a circular walk in Orphir, taking in a variety of habitats and wildlife. Setting off from The Bu , with its Norse and Medieval history, we headed down a grassy track to the shores of Orphir Bay, where waders were bathing and foraging at the water's edge. Heading east along the low clifftop, we looked at the many wildflowers by the path such as Bird's-Foot Trefoil, Spring Squill and Primrose, as well as the less obvious male and female blooms of Dwarf Willow. There were many insects on the wing, including Silver Y moths and a Painted Lady butterfly.   Spring Squill It was weeks later when I thought to try and identify this hoverfly, failed miserably and asked the lovely folk at UK Hoverflies Facebook group Identified as a female Parasyrphus nigritarsis, not that ...

The Orcadian weather continues to exhibit bi-polar qualities, or at least on some days it is very North Polar. Which just means one has to look harder for some wildlife. For instance, here's a micro moth on a potato leaf in the veg bed. I am reliably informed that this is A ncylis badiana (thanks, NC). At the weekend it was rather windy. Exhibit A is my neighbour's dressing gown. Exhibits B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V and W are all the clothes pegs he used to keep it on the washing line. Another moth, of whose ID I can't be sure, possibly one of the numerous species of Arches. It was roosting on a door frame, where I didn't notice it until I opened the door and it fluttered on to a wall. It is a very characterful door, and proving to be quite the insect magnet, possibly due to a combination of being in a sheltered location, facing the sunrise, and handy for a nectar hit. This next moth is a Common Marbled Carpet. An early evening walk in ...