07-08-26 Five days after my last visit to Saltoun Big Wood I returned. I realised it wasn't the best forecast on Friday, but set off anyway as the 32mile cycle would do me good. We have had a number of overcast days, I was bored, and there was nothing very sunshiny on the horizon so I made some tasty sandwiches, a flask of cold juice and pedalled off into the best looking mixed-sunshine-and-cloud…
02-08-26 And a fantasic trip to Saltoun Big Wood. Things are beginning to kick off there but still a little less than full gas as the devil's bit scabious is only starting to bud. That is the purple flowering stems that line the back trail on either side and lure all the insects in the place out, to put on an exhibition of butterflies that I rarely see elsewhere in Scotland. red admiral I like to…
30-07-26 Colin invited me on his planned trip to the rickety fence, Melrose, to hunt for Scotch Argus butterflies. I jumped at the chance: it is a pretty butterfly, and a great location. The main real reason I'd not planned to visit it solo, was the hassle of travelling. Which previously involved trains, my bike or 10miles of running. Last done (I was surprised to see) in 2022. Always around the…
22nd July. Another uneventful and slightly overcast jaunt to Warriston. But pleasant enough to archive some pics and video rather than bin it. Of note: this wren - I suspect a youngster - was particularly active around the In Loving (Comma Corner) area and let me sneak up very close for photos and slo-mo video. wren video soundtrack: 02:07 by Joep Beving, Maarten Vos There was also this fresh…
19-07-26 First of many refers to this amazing peacock as well as the first trip up the back trail at Saltoun Big Wood, slightly ahead of the annual butterfly festival that will be kicking off end of July into August, just as soon as the devil's bit scabious appears - the purple flowers that bring all the butterflies out of the surrounding woods. These peacocks (just 2) were amazing and were the…
12 + 17-07-26. A couple of trips to Warriston, devoid of interest. 😁 comma GVW I was surprised Mary was in the photos on both days. She has been struggling with her sore knees which are still swollen and defy easy analysis and fixing. I suspect she didn't stay as long as myself on at least one of the occasions and possibly both. I have more stamina for a good few hours of wandering around, even…
16th July. Another one of those days where I set off in search of one thing, don't find it, but then other stuff appears along the way. Today I was inspired by old pal Abbie M. She passes her photos on to East Lothian Rangers who post them on their facebook page. Abbie had photographed a broad-bodied chaser at Longniddry, at the new pond there. East Lothian council have dug (I believe) 9 new ponds…
15-07-26. So gullswimbutt was the name of the folder I kept these photos in. And the name stuck. It refers to a great day along the coast when M and I went for a swim in Gullane Bay then a butterfly safari along towards Aberlady afterwards. It was Mary's idea and was much better than I thought it would be. Both the watery bit and the butterfly hunt. Mary wore a shorty - a cross between a swimsuit…
10th July. This was the second day I'd attempted to visit Saltoun Big Wood. The previous day I'd stood at the Carlton Terrace bus stop for around 50minutes. A Lothian bus eventually stopped and I reckon the driver realised I was extremely hacked off, because he asked what I was waiting for. The 113 to Pencaitland I answered (an every-30-minutes-service allegedly) and he gave me a lift to the next…
8th July Here we are into July already. This was something of a frustrating trip and yet also fairly enjoyable. I had heard there was a family of long-eared owls in the Pentlands. Gordon had been walking his dog and had enjoyed a tremendous display from them - the adults flying nearby and catching food to give to youngsters in the trees overhead. Loads of photos were going up on birding sites,…
29-06-26 A couple of days later and I decided to do a favourite route; Longniddry to Gullane off the NB train. Partly because nothing else called out for attention, partly because there might be a few DGFs lurking about the dunes near the golf course between Aberlady and Gullane. First obvious mistake was the wind. Why was mother nature blowing so hard and spoiling it for those who would have…
27th June. Not long back from holiday and this was the first trip out with the camera. It was nearly sunny and I thought I'd take a constitutional up to the valerian at Samson's Ribs above the Innocent Railway. To my surprise a quite obliging humming-bird hawk-moth appeared (after not-too-long-a-wait) and I got some photos and video clips. First some thoughts on the Orange March down the High…
The final chapter of the Greek butterflying holiday, covering 23~25th June. Reviewing all these photos makes me realise how hard Sotiris (and Greenwings) worked to put together an interesting and diverse set of daily trips. There were no days when things sagged, despite it being quite tiring out in the hot sun most of the day and on quite testing ground at times. The species were well spread out…
Chapter 2. 20th~22nd June It seems over the top to write up the Greek butterflying holiday in three parts but there is just so much material. And I struggle with editing or throwing stuff out. Six thousand images and videos was condensed to around five or six hundred and I don't like to post more than 200 per blog. I realise people aren't that interested in every detail - it is more a debriefing…
A while back, Mary saw on the internet a guided butterfly holiday in the mountains of Southern Greece. While it was far more expensive than our usual package holiday deals, it would drive us to specific places to see a huge number of butterflies. I think Mary had hardly finished the sentence are you interested before I said I'm in . On paper it looked like my perfect holiday - being chauffeured…
14-06-26 I knew the Small Pearl-Bordered Fritillaries were out and about thanks to a couple of sightings posted on the ESB fb group. I was reluctant to head to Tentsmuir too soon but only had a couple of opportunities before I flew off to Greece on the 17th. The best weather window seemed to be on Sunday 14th so I packed my pannier bags with sandwiches, juice and camera and headed to Waverley to…
10-06-26 NBA Blue sounds like some kind of sports award or US cop drama. It was actually the first occasion on which I saw common blues this year. And the second time I saw Northern Brown Argus; although the first decent photos. It underlines what has been a fairly crappy early Summer. It hasn't been a wash out like 2 years ago but it hasn't been optimal either. Common blues, not quite as common…
30-05-26 Revisiting Lamberton for more small blues. Since I'd just done small blues on Thursday it seemed madness going back on Saturday for more. However this was an Iain C organised guided group visit and I quite fancied going along and meeting the gang. Also the original weather forecast of meh turned to maybe and then ohh could be good . The problem was getting there: I didn't want the chore…
28-05-26. Pleasantly surprised by how well the Pitlochry trip went, I earmarked the next decent weather day for the annual Berwickshire coastal path day out. Ostensibly to see and photograph small blues (not available in the Lothians) there is always far more to enjoy on the delightful coastal trails between Berwick-upon Tweed and St Abbs. I was a little nervous about the whole train thing having…
26-05-26 After all the complaints about the weather, along comes a day with another more-of-the-same iffy forecast. So I plan nothing more ambitious than an afternoon in Warriston. The sun comes out and the insects clearly got the email because they come out too. Nothing particularly exotic but things were on the move and I had a brilliant time trying to photograph them, in decent light, for a…
22-06-26. This was a pretty awful day out. The light was crappy and my mood was worse. Kinda cold and nothing was flying - birds or butterflies. (Lots of mayflies, but that's hardly compensation.) To try and cheer ourselves up we had chosen a favourite walk: catch the tram to Balgreen then walk to Saughton Park, photograph the flocks of butterflies there, then walk up the Water of Leith where…
25-05-26 The annual trip to Pitlochry to see Pearl-bordered fritillaries nearly didn't happen this year. I have been going there since 2018 with mixed results. For several years I fell into the trap of travelling too early - overexcited by the prospect of a beautiful butterfly in a beautiful setting, I'd head up there as soon as they were on the wing, then find out the Linn of Tummel PBFs were a…
24-05-26 My brother Neil was diagnosed with MND just over a year ago. It was a particularly cruel form of motor neuron disease called Progressive Bulbar Palsy, which initially caused problems with his speech, and then all throat functions, including eating and breathing. He had a feeding tube fitted to accommodate eating and latterly wore a mask to help him with breathing and in particular…
18-05-26 I'll probaby have to explain the rage-bait title. I've not been looking forward to this blog because it records a failure and contaminates a favourite experience and species due to an erroneous weather forecast, a long dreary cycle and a poor result. I'll keep it brief. Actually I should wallow in it as my lovely readership often seem to enjoy my spectacular failures more than yet another…
A short but pleasant one here; a small cycle ride round the lagoons and back, mid-May, for fitness rather than photos. We only stopped once - at the Esk Estuary because there were starlings and swallows buzzing the area and it was respectably sunny. We had only taken B cameras as there were no specific plans to photo anything, but it would be against the law to take no cameras. So B cameras were…