Wildflowers in Scotland ~ Sundew, Lousewort and Milkwort

We came across this patch of Sundew while walking across marshy ground in the Clearance village of Ceannebeinne near Durness in the north of Scotland. I am not sure that I had ever seen this fascinating plant before in the wild. It was certainly a case of blink and you'll miss it ... but I had my eyes wide open, checking for ticks!

Unsuspecting insects find themselves trapped in the Sundew's sticky liquid, produced by the plant to supplement its food intake in areas of poor soil.  

The site produced a number of small flowers, including this Marsh Lousewort below. The rather horrible name is apparently the result of a folkore belief that sheep who grazed on this plant would become infested by lice. 

The photo below shows the archaeologist (aka David) in his element, working out the alignment of abandoned crofts.

And finally ... and still from the same site ... one of my favourite Highland flowers, the tiny blue (probably Heath) Milkwort. The yellow flower may be related to Tormentil, but I am not sure!

Beside the Sea ~ Jellyfish Sightings in Scotland

While we were in Scotland we saw jellyfish on two occasions. The jellyfish above was on the beach at Durness (24 June 2013).

The one below was at Chanonry Point (26 June 2013). It was part of a cluster of stranded jellyfish: in the evening light, we counted 56. 

Both photos (I believe) show the Moon Jellyfish, also known as Aurelia.

I shall record these sightings on the Marine Conservation Society site. Jellyfish are linked to Leatherback turtles in the food chain. These magnificent, but threatened, turtles make huge underwater journeys in search of these strange sea creatures.

The stings from some species of jellyfish can be dangerous, so it is important to treat these free-swimming marine animals with care.  

Postscript ... 5 August 2013: you may be interested in this BBC report.

Beautiful Birds ~ The Common Tern on the Cromarty Firth

We had never been to Foulis on the Cromarty Firth before. Unbeknown to us it proved to be not only a good place for tea and cake, but also an excellent site for the Common Tern. Can you see that raft-like structure some way out in the water? ...

This was where the Terns gathered.

You will find the slightly more de luxe model of raft here!

The raft, which you can see in its entirety below, serves as a suitable nesting place for these birds. We were there some two weeks ago when there were quite a few Common Tern about, but according to a report in today's BBC news (link here), 95 pairs have now been spotted off Foulis!

Seals and Cetaceans ~ Bottlenose Dolphins in the Moray Firth

There are few things as majestic as a dolphin fin as it slices effortlessly through the water! We arrived at our picnic place on the Moray Firth on our journey south from Durness two weeks ago to find a dearth of dolphins. We were told that it was due to the state of the tide, so we returned later that day and our patience was rewarded!

We watched the dolphins over two days, and while they were few in numbers compared to our sightings on previous occasions, we both felt that this was one of our best dolphin watches in terms of visibility, closeness to shore (remarkably close!), views of a calf ... and reasonably good weather. 

This photo shows the narrow width of the strait, so it is not surprising that the dolphins make the most of the currents when the tide is on the turn.

It is surprisingly difficult to get a photo of a dolphin's face in the air! By the time the creature has emerged, it is almost too late for a camera click ...

... so most of my photos show fins in various poses and combinations.

You can see the blow-hole in the picture above. I had never heard the blowing noise so clearly before. Perhaps we were lucky this time because the wind was still and the dolphins were so close to the shore.

This dolphin lifted a large strand of kelp!

With the tide about to come in, it was time for cruising along - with a spot of fishing and more acrobatics!

Dolphins in tandem, swimming along together.

You can make a splash without a blow-hole ...

... but I just love those blow-holes ...

... and those strong tails!

What a lovely way to spend the last night of a holiday!

• The thought-processes of Bottlenose Dolphins (Guardian feature, 2003)
• Bottlenose dolphins and their individual whistle sounds for communication (Science Now, 2013)
• Bottlenose dolphins play jellyfish-football (Daily Mail, 2009)

Seals and Cetaceans: Seals at Dunvegan, Skye

I mentioned a few days ago that I would return to photos from our recent Scottish holiday. We have a particular love of the Isle of Skye, also known as Eilean a' Cheo - the Misty Isle. 

A particular treat is to take the small seal boat from Dunvegan Castle out on the glassy waters of Loch Dunvegan to see the seals on the skerries.  

On this occasion we shared the boat with another couple and the skipper. It was a very warm humid day with grey skies. It was the only day of our holiday when I felt that we were actually 'troubled' by midges, but once we out on the water, there was hardly an insect to be seen. The skippers are very experienced and know the moods of the sea-loch like the back of their hand. They are also very familiar with the seals, knowing just how close to go without causing disturbance or unrest of any kind.

The seals in this colony love to laze around on the kelp-strewn rock. They know that the skippers will only go 'so close'. Most of the time they look so sleek and docile that it is hard to believe that they could inflict serious injury if frightened. I get a huge thrill from being 'nose to whisker' with these mammals, and mid-summer proved a particularly rewarding time for our visit as the cow-seals were pupping. It surprised me that the skipper had a particular date in mind, saying that most pupping seals in this colony would produce their offspring on the same given day. 

This magnificent creature was particularly unfazed by our presence. I love the pink tongue!

You can appreciate the excellent view we had from our clinker-built craft.

I love the way that the seal on the left has draped itself over the kelp ... and I also like the folded flippers of the creature behind!

I suspect this seal may have been waiting to give birth. What beautiful folds of skin around the neck! 

This younger seal (one of last year's pups, perhaps) seemed to have a more quizzical look. It can be very hard not to describe these wild animals in anthropomorphic terms ... but at the same time, I am well aware that these mammals are dangerous and quite capable of inflicting serious injury. 

Minutes pass so quickly out on the loch, and it was soon time to return to the castle gardens ...

... but not before we took a moment (please excuse the string of adjectives!) to admire this utterly irresistible shiny black day-old pup!

Mustelidae: Otters in Scotland

I love to watch otters in the wild. They are very difficult creatures to spot, so we felt particularly pleased to have three sightings during our recent fortnight in Scotland. Two clues help me in my initial spotting, the first being that telltale V in the water as an otter swims, and the second, well, you have probably guessed, that 'ring of bright water' that was borrowed as a phrase by Gavin Maxwell from 'The Marriage of Psyche', the poem by Kathleen Raine.

We often use the car as a hide. It means that the otter is less likely to notice a human scent or to hear a strange noise. It also means that we can keep dry, though we had to keep switching on the windscreen wipers during the time we watched the otter above in the Assynt area.
 

That ring of bright water, emanating from the steel-grey loch ...

Two of my three otter sightings were of otters in the water. The third sighting, on Skye, began with an otter swimming near the shore, in and out of the kelp. To our great excitement, the creature climbed out of the water on to a long low rock, allowing us to see its whole form before it dived back and disappeared into its mysterious watery world.

We have re-visited old haunts on our recent holidays. We have also enjoyed new places along the way, but we have discovered that tried and tested destinations often yield good sightings. It takes patience, of course, and there is always the unpredictable element of timing: you just have to be in the right place at the right time!

Swimming close to the shore