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 our house move, there's not been too much time for dedicated nature watching, as we instead navigate the peaks and valleys of cardboard boxes which seemingly fill every available space in home and garage.  Blogging has taken a bit of a back seat, so best I publish a 'catch-up' post to cover the days and weeks either side of the move. Immediately prior to completing the purchase (or settlement, as it's called up here), I was working in Shetland for a day. With a bit of time to kill before the ferry back to Orkney, I opted for a short wander in the hills near my last customer, rather than head into Lerwick and do battle with the hordes of cruise ship passengers from two huge vessels in the harbour. A once typical and increasingly rare Shetland scene because of the Viking Wind Farm project Bog Asphodel, a Sundew, Selfheal and Tormentil Sheep's-bit A species of Ragwort Possibly the warmest hour I have ever spent in Shetland, it was idyllic What I was unaware of, h...

Since our holiday in early June, there's not been much opportunity to string together several days of wildlife watching, but with the commencement of July that all changed. Even better, Alan, a friend from my days in Milton Keynes was currently on holiday in Orkney, so we met up on Friday morning for a drookit wander around Orphir Bay and the Gyre Wood, catching up on things and generally setting the world to rights. Swallow fledglings contemplating the weather After lunch, we were joined by Megan and the three of us set off to try and see some of the things that Alan hadn’t yet spotted on his holiday. First, we parked at the top of the Scorradale Road, and ambled about the low hills, taking in the views and the flora and fauna. A sawfly preying upon a Red-thighed St Mark's Fly Then we drove across to Yesnaby on the west coast, which is just a wildflower heaven at the moment. We pottered about the coastal heath habitat, marvelling at the abundant and colourful display. Prim...