Late summer flowers showing welcome colour now include the bluey purple Devil’s bit Scabious, creamy white Meadowsweet, bright yellows of Sow thistle and the Marsh Ragwort hybrid and the purple Hedge Woundwort hybrid. The white of the distinctive Grass of parnassus is a firm favourite.
An exciting time was when three Two-barred Crossbills paused to feed on dock seeds at the dig at Noltland for a few days.
The Puffins have all left with their young, as have Kittewakes. There are some Gannets yet to fledge their nests, they will soon be gone too. In their place, we are seeing large flocks of Golden Plover feeding on recently cut fields, alongside Black-tailed Godwits and Oystercatchers. Bar-tailed Godwits can be seen now mostly on the beaches at the tideline. Sanderling, Dunlin and Knot frequent the beaches but also Loch of Swartmill. The water levels here are unusually low for the time of year providing excellent feeding opportunities for waders, 60 Black-tailed Godwits were here on 20th August.
Hen Harrier, Short-eared Owl , Merlin and Pergrine are beginning to make their appearances, a juvenile Peregrine was testing it’s skills targetting Fulmars at Castle O’Burrian on 18th August.
Great Yellow Bumblebees are still busy collectine pollen, this one was visiting Sow thistles at Surrigarth