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...

Time for a bit of a round-up of the last month's nature watching since we returned from holiday. Our weather has continued to be rather mercurial, the occasional warm, sunny day in between dreich periods with chilly winds. For the season, some things are early, some things are late, the wildlife is not sure what to make of Spring 2026. Neither does it help an amateur naturalist with his sartorial decisions, so if in doubt it's four layers and a set of waterproofs. A trip to Sanday saw me visiting a bit of the island which I not previously seen. After a walk along the beach at Backaskaill Bay, I detoured to investigate a large metal construction. It commemorated a sad event which happened more than 30 years ago. Back at home, we're slowly adding more aquatic plants to the pond as friends donate things from their gardens. We now have our very first Bogbean flower! The dragonfly season in Orkney started in mid-May, but it was only last week, as more sightings came in, that we ...

June, despite its mercurial weather, has been quite the lepidopteran feast. The past three weekends have featured some sunny weather, huge downpours and gale force winds. You may recall that we had to cancel a wildlife walk due to persistent showers. It should be noted that this postponement was purely for the benefit of humans, the wildlife was out in the weather whatever. There follows a brief round-up of some of the moths and butterflies seen since we last spoke. There has been a steady stream of sightings of Painted Ladies in the county. This one was nectaring on our front "lawn". Prior to one of the huge downpours, Megan spotted this moth on the garage wall. How, I do not know. Grey Dagger Sheltering from the weather, this time on the frame of the patio door, a Clouded-bordered Brindle. Meanwhile on the recess of the kitchen window, a Narrow-winged Pug And the fourth Megan-spotted moth was a Wormwood Pug on the increasingly-popular garage wall.  Yesterday saw us leading ...

What's this, NaHaL, surely you should be pootling about in the wilderness looking for insects, not blogging? Sadly, after watching the roller coaster ride of a constantly changing weather forecast for a week, the decision was taken to postpone the walk until the end of the month. Hopefully, it will be warmer and drier by then. In contrast, yesterday was glorious, so here are some photos from our garden. I was talking about habitats to one of the builders from the site next door and he was showing me photos of his pond. The conversation moved on to butterfly banks and as I airily waved towards where we are thinking of creating one, this Common Blue appeared. Some sawfly larvae chomping away on our cuttings of Tea-leaved Willow. Using the internet, I managed to come up with the correct genus for them, Euura . However, the local recorder pointed me in the right direction of the species,  E. ferruginea or Rusty Willow Nematine. When Megan had finished work, she took a turn around the g...

Since returning from holiday, there have been a few entomological trips to keep us entertained. Here are a swarm of photos to bring us up to date, from various sites in West Mainland and the island of Hoy, but beginning and ending at home: A 10-spotted Ladybird found on the bathroom window At the pool by Brinkies Brae Guest House: The shed skin of a newly-emerged Large Red Damselfly (not seen) A Green-veined White butterfly nectaring on a Cuckooflower A Crane Fly, Tipula sp. A bumblebee-mimic hoverfly, Eristalis intracaria Bog Reed Beetle Another Bog Reed Beetle Yet more Bog Reed Beetles Heather Beetle   In Hoy, searching for dragons: A newly-emerged Large Red Damselfly, Scapa Museum pool A Blue-tailed Damselfly, Scapa Museum pool A pair of Large Red Damselflies engaged in a spot of egg-laying at Rackwick Another pair of Large Red Damselflies at Rackwick Large Red Damselfly at Rackwick Whilst on a bumblebee survey at Skaill Bay: The bumblebees were too swift to photograph, so here'...