A walk at Northside on Saturday. The mission was to check on the Arctic Terns on Skiba Geo. Maybe twenty pairs looked to be on the rocks, we'll see what happens. Several Bonxies went by but not much else of avian interest.
Tystie love
Waves
Thrift, scurvy grass and The Brough
Dandelions and waves
Lesser Celandine and silverweed
Shiny woodlouse (Oniscus asellus)
A Trombidium sp mite (thanks LJ for id), a big very bright thing.
Eider display
Eider pair
Oystercatcher
The moth trap had added a couple of new species for the year, White Ermine and Silver Y.
White Ermine
Lady's Smock
Lady's Smock
Silver Y
Eristalis pertinax
Gastrophysa viridula the green dock beetle, found all over the place at the weekend.
Some initial pix with the new Canon G3. My worries of not getting the magnification on birds etc were unfounded. Lack of an eye piece has so far not been too much of a disadvantage (and one is available, for a price). It is heavy and it doesn't fit in the bag I ordered for it, oops. I took some pictures yesterday in the evening light so I was pushing it.
Sycamore flowers with Fever Fly (Dilophus febrilis)
Mealy Redpolls
I need to reorganise the redpoll page which I will do shortly.
I do like a film where not much happens. I can really recommend this French film from 2014 (no, not the American survivalist tosh) which is about the rave culture and the garage music that went with it. It is a beautiful, poignant story of a life, perhaps (and certainly) wasted. The music is essential and brilliant, the filming is original, and (spoiler alert) the characters age. A further spoiler, the film ends with a poem, The Rhythm by the American poet Robert Creeley, more reason to enjoy.
Give life back to music - Daft Punk
I had a bit of Steely Dan splurge this evening listening to The Royal Scam and Aja, in quick succession and subjecting older daughter to this music from 42 and 41 years ago. Every note, every drum beat and every word carefully considered. I especially like the chorus to Deacon Blues,
They got a name for the winners in the world
I want a name when I lose
Home at last condenses the essence of Homer's Odyssey to twelve lines and a four line chorus.
Some insect success - the Emperor Moth pheromone lure I purchased works rather well, the only problem is they keep flying, not especially good for photography. I have had one in the garden and one down by The Shunan as well as in more familiar moorland locations. So far this year nine species of moth, dominated by Hebrew Character.
A new beetle for me was located in a puddle at Hobbister, when we were unsuccessfully looking for Orcas. After a bit of a struggle with my ancient beetle summary book and the Mike Hackston key I was happy to come to the confident conclusion that it was the Chrysomelid beetle Lochmaea suturalis. It is a tad tricky from L.caprea but I got there in the end, thanks LJ for some help to leap the final hurdle. No checking further anyway as the wee blighter escaped.
The slightly shiny pronotum and the pale spot on the head seem to nail it, I couldn't see the abdominal feature as this is a female I think, but I don't think you can tell just by looking at the beetle.
Another success was this tiny Dipteran found whilst taking photographs of flowers under the hawthorn (Cretagus monogyna) hedge.
Molophilus ater
This was first found in Orkney in 2016 on South Ronaldsay and has been recorded but once since I think. A first record for Mainland. Thanks again to LJ, this time I just asked, a lot of time can be spent trying to id Dips, our county recorder is most helpful.
Marsh Marigold
Primrose
Rather like our cars, owning three but having one working (or at least available to me), I'm down to the Olympus Tough at the moment (and the occasional borrow of Louise's Sony) (Mollie has the Nikon after her one had a bit of an accident). My Canon SX60 has caught the deadly Lens error a fatal condition. This is the second of this series of cameras, SX50 previously, that have succumbed to dirt in the lens system, in the last two years. I have decided that despite the very good results and ease of use of these models they are just not really suited to the use I'm putting them to. They have now gone up in price to just under £400 ish and Canon wanted the best part of £200 to repair my one, with a 90 day guarantee that would not cover the dust issue it's not an economic proposition. At least I don't need to worry about the Tough in this regard, and it does work digiscoping, but I've always found that a bit clumsy. Something new is required.
A trip or two to Yesnaby finally resuted in finding the target species:
Chrysolina latecincta
A nationally rare beast indeed.
Primula scotica
... and we did eventually catch up with the Orcas, distant views from The Foveran footpath.
No posts in April, well it was all rather exhausting, a holiday, a rest? Might back-fill later. The vehicle situation has improved a tad but two steps forward and one back as the timing belt went on the Corsa, 33 thou, that's ridiculous - apparently a known issue. Hopefully the engine valves will be ok as it went on start up I think.
Another broken thing the Canon SX60 so bird photos are not occurring. Sent off on guarantee but no such luck as I've been using it "outside in the wind" so the dust getting in is not a guarantee matter. (Rather a lot of expletives....) This was £329 new and they want nigh on £200 to repair, I think not. I'm thinking to go for a Canon G3 which is at least dust and water "resistant" but fearsome expensive, + another £200 for a viewfinder but, I'll probably go down that road as it covers a number of bases in one go.
Some good nights out to Scottish Ballet (Highland Fling), and they came and worked with us too, brilliant. The Cuban Brothers - I'm lost for words - is it ok? I'm not sure it is, but at times very funny and weird (but also sexist and somehow "wrong", there is a race issue as well). In the end I didn't really know what to make of it all. Jon Richardson was funny though, I really enjoy that story telling about ordinary life, and how about a 20th of the population being in one room!
The garden was full of birds today - Tree Spugs, Siskin, Redpoll, Goldfinch - all good Orkney birds. Down on the Shunan the Mute Swans have mostly dispersed but a continuing nice gang of duck and smart looking Ruffs.
I've started mothing again, usual suspects but wandering around on the moor has produced four fly-by Emperor Moths (using a pheromone lure). Also more Small Tortoiseshells than I saw all last year I think.
A few beetles as well, some photos of this stuff would be nice to post but Blogger is non-functional in that respect, probably need to close the browser and start again.
