Archive June 2025


Archive - June 2025

Week ending: 29th June: Longniddry Bents, Hogganfield Park LNR, Strathclyde Country Park

Another week of changeable weather loomed, so my strategy was unchanged - dodge the showers and hope for nice light.

Monday, 23rd June: Longniddry Bents

I happened to visit Longniddry Bents, during late afternoon Monday, mainly to sample the food there from the Alanda’s food van. Of course I had my camera in the boot and spent a half hour searching the shoreline for interesting pictures. I started with a shot of the atmospheric panorama looking west, over Seton Sands, towards Edinburgh.

My grandson, Callum, found a 7-spot Ladybird on the path. Near it was a Musk Thistle. We next searched the grassy foreshore and Callum then noticed a White-tailed Bumblebee buzzing furiously on the pollen-covered stamens of a ragged Dog Rose. We both marvelled at the beauty
of an Opium Poppy plant that was growing by roadside.

7 Spot Ladybird	Musk Thistle

Dog Rose / White - tailed Bumblebee	Opium Poppy

Also by the road was Weld, a plant of tall, thin, yellow spikes. It was once used to produce a yellow dye - and it is a fast grower, hence its alternative name of Dyer’s Rocket. We then popped onto the sandy beach where Callum found a butterfly- a very well-camouflaged Red
Admiral. As we made our way back to the car we passed a couple of Carrion Crows lounging on a bench.

Weld	Red Admiral Butterfly

Viper's Bugloss	Carrion Crow

Wednesday am, 25th June: Hogganfield Park LNR

A couple of days later, on the best weather day of the week, I decided to go to Hogganfield Loch in the morning and, after lunch, check out Strathclyde Country Park. As usual, the lochside at the main car park was dominated by Mute Swans, moulting Mallards and gulls.

There seemed to be an increasing number of Greylags there (and it’s much the same at Strathclyde Country Park). I like watching the feisty wee Jackdaws foraging among the much larger birds, often risking a painful nip, or worse, by pinching their bread. The “boss” gulls are the
Lesser Black-backed Gulls. The ones pictured below are perching on the dilapidated remains of a feeding platform (which will hopefully be repaired soon). There weren’t many Black-headed Gulls, which were probably in their breeding grounds. They will soon be back I’m sure. The substructure of feeding platform is proving a handy roosting area for the smaller birds and some wildflowers obviously like the conditions there - like the Monkey Flower shown below.

Greylag Goose	Jackdaw

Lesser Black - backed Gull	Monkey Flower

As I started my circuit of the park I couldn’t help but notice striking, tall Purple Loosestrife spikes were in bloom. I passed a female Mallard nursing her duckling on the bank’s edge. I paused briefly for the picture, but cautiously, so as not to disturb them. However they showed no fear.
There were a couple of Cormorants, an adult and a juvenile, perched in the middle of the southeast section of the loch. The adult looked a bit fearsome.

Purple Loosestrife	Female Mallard

Cormorant	Juvenile Cormorant

Around the edges of the loch the vegetation was tall and thick with Meadowsweet blooming like exotic candy-floss. Lots of blue/purple Meadow Cranesbills were flowering in the uncut grassmeadows around the park. Common Spotted Orchids peeked above the areas where the grass was shorter. I nearly stood on a Yellow Fieldcap mushroom as I looked for dragonflies in a small dipping pool at the east side of the path.

Meadowsweet	Meadow Cranesbill

Common Spotted Orchid	Yellow Fieldcap

Turning my attention once more to the loch I found two Great Crested Grebe chicks left all alone. Their adults were probably looking for fish to feed them so I waited for one to return with fish, but to no avail. They didn’t appear. I was not too bothered though because I heard the plaintive call of a male Reed Bunting and quickly located it about 30m away, half hidden by the branches on a small tree. I was able to find a better viewing angle and ended up with a quite pleasing shot. The water Avens flowers I’d seen a week or two earlier, had now developed into a spikey seed-head. Next I found a patch of aptly-named Ragged Robin flowers - ragged but still very pretty.

Juvenile Great Crested grebe	Reed Bunting

Water Avens ( Seed Head )	Ragged Robin

I checked the much bigger pond at the east of the park, but it was empty of birds, but it was worth the walk since I managed a shot of a Ringlet, a fairly elusive butterfly. And soon after that, a Lattice Heath moth fluttered across the path and landed conveniently half a metre away from where I was standing. I completed a trio of insect sightings by accidentally photographing a Mirid Bug, Calocoris stysi (now called Grypocoris stysi) when I snapped a Large Bindweed flower. I finished my morning trip with a standard picture of a busy wee Coot near the car park.

Ringlet Butterfly	Lattice Heath Moth

Bug - Calocoris stysi	Coot

Wednesday pm & Thursday, 25th & 26 June: Strathclyde Country Park.

After lunch, I headed to Strathclyde Country Park. My start was briefly delayed by a large flock of Greylag Geese that couldn’t decide whether or not to take to the water. I think they wanted to graze on the grassland, but the frequent passes of dogs and their walkers were proving to be too much of a threat

.
I came upon a juvenile Pied Wagtail making hard work of catching a moth - it couldn’t quite finish the job and flew off leaving the moth, a Large Yellow Underwing moth, fluttering on the path. Near the mouth of the South Calder river, another juvenile, this time a Robin, flew into my
path as it chased a butterfly. It was even less successful - the butterfly left it standing. I got a nice shot of a male Great Crested Grebe bobbing in the choppy waters of the mouth of the river.

Juvenile Pied Wagtail	Large Yellow Underwing Moth

Juvenile Robin	Great Crested Grebe

I crossed the footbridge over the river and walked to the dipping pond, passing some Common Valerian umbilifers now coming into flower, and patches of Brambles hosting frequent visits of bees and Hoverflies, such as Eristalis Arbustorum. At the pond, I photographed Azure Damselflies, some of which were coupled, the female bent double as the male held it down.

Common Valerian	Hoverfly - Eristalis Arbustorum

Azure Damselfly...

I on my way back to the car, as I returned to the footbridge, I got a better shot of a Large Bindweed and shot of another Ringlet butterfly. A Magpie was foraging on the grassy slope beside the road. At the other side of the bridge I got a lovely picture of a Red Poppy just before noticing a Broad-leaved Helleborine nestled at the shaded edges of roadside bushes. Near the car, a Perennial Cornflower provided my final photo-opportunity, rounding off a very satisfactory week.

Large Bindweed	Ringlet Butterfly

Magpie	Red Poppy

Broad - leaved Helleborine	Perennial Cornflower

It was a very successful week. My total number of sightings was 54 species ( NB: I’ve included only a selection of these for the blog). My favourites were the moths and butterflies, particularly the Large Yellow Underwing, a newbie. I also enjoyed finding the Reed Bunting and the charming wee juvenile Robin.

Week Ending 22nd June: RSPB Baron's Haugh, Strathclyde Park,
Linlithgow Palace

The weather predicted for the week could be summarised as “changeable”. My strategy then, was to dodge the showers and hope for nice light.

Monday am, Thursday and Saturday am, 16th, 19th and 21st June RSPB Baron's Haugh

I had several visits to Baron’s Haugh reserve. There was very little to see from the hide, just a good sighting of a prowling Grey Heron and wading cattle at the Marsh Hide and a Roe Deer doe dashing for cover at the Causeway Hide. As I walked between the hides, I photographed a busy
Honey Bee on Dog Roses and a Green-veined White butterfly on Bramble flowers. I also spotted Badger spraint on the footpath - probably a territorial signal to other badgers.

Grey Heron

Honey Bee	Green - veined White Butterfly

Roe Deer	Badger Spraint

At the River Clyde, there were reported to be Otters, but I just missed seeing them (or so a walker delighted in telling me). I did however snap a family of Mallards - a female with four youngsters, that were all paddling upstream.

The mother duck has done a good job since her clutch was largely intact and looked to be in the best of shape. As I took a shot of a Brown-lipped Snail I heard, then located, a Song Thrush belting out a loud song from the top branches of a pathside tree. Further along the river, near the Chestnut Way (where the Otters had been seen), a family of Goosanders were gathered on a sandy bank (a sure sign that the Otters had moved on).

Juvenile Mallard	Brown - lipped Snail

Song Thrush	Juvenile Goosander

The Goosanders paddled downstream after their short rest.

I then encountered a trio of butterflies along the grassy banks of the River Clyde: a Meadow Brown, a Ringlet and a Small Copper . On my way back to the car park a Grey Squirrel was scampering along a bridge. In the shadow of the wall I found a small Common Carpet Moth and also some Meadow Cranesbills side-by-side with Hedge Mustard.

Meadow Brown Butterfly	Ringlet Butterfly

Small Copper Butterfly	Grey Squirrel

Common Carpet Moth	Meadow Cranesbill

Monday pm, 16th June : Strathclyde Park

Following my discovery of a Snow Goose last week at Strathclyde Country Park, I returned there on Monday afternoon to see if it was still there among the moulting Greylag flock.

It was. The Clyde area SOC have declared it as a feral Snow Goose, one of a thousand such birds permanently resident in the UK (the wild Snow Goose spends the summer in Greenland, Arctic North America and Siberia, and sometimes visits the UK in the winter). There were several species
of wildflowers growing on the pebble banks of the loch: a few Monkey Flowers , Creeping Thistles and Hogweed - with Honey Bees feeding on the pollen.

Snow Goose	Monkey Flower

Creeping Thistle	Hogweed / Honey Bee

At the head of the loch, a female Mallard was leading her ducklings around the loch edges as they learned to feed themselves.

I walked to the woods east of the M&D’s fairground and snapped Hedge Woundwort and a large bracket fungus, called Artist’s Fungus. These shots were followed by shots of a pretty, tall Common Spotted Orchid rising above the thick grassy edge of the woods. Lately I’ve come
across quite a few Speckled Wood butterflies at most of the sites I’ve visited in Central Scotland.

Hedge Woundwort	Artist's Bracket

Common Spotted Orchid	Speckled Wood Butterfly

Eventually I emerged from the woods, just before the South Calder bridge. There are large areas of the park there which have been prepared as wildflower beds. This is the second year of that project. Already there are some lovely flowers showing like the spikes of Viper’s Bugloss, the very
pretty pink Musk Mallow and small, but eye-catching blue Cornflowers. I was pleased to find a Xylota segnis, a newbie for us. And in a patch of Bramble flowers by the river was a feeding ground for insects like Syrphus Ribesii. I got satisfying views of a pair of Great Crested Grebes amid the many Greylags at the mouth of the South Calder river.

Viper's Bugloss	Musk Mallow

Cornflower	Hoverfly - XylotaSegnis

Hoverfly - Syrphus Ribesii	Great Crested Grebe

As I walked back to the car I passed a line of Red Poppies dancing in the strengthening breeze.

Friday 19th June: Linlithgow Loch

On Friday I travelled east to the very picturesque Linlithgow Loch, which is dominated by the historic, royal Linlithgow Palace, which was once the residence of the Stewarts, such as Mary Queen of Scots .

The Loch was fairly quite, as a lot of the gulls were away to their breeding grounds. However, the Mute Swans, Tufted Ducks, Mallards and Jackdaws were satisfying enough….

Mute Swan	Tufted Duck

Mallard	Jackdaw

I came across another newby on some pathside Common Nettles: Deraeocoris ruber , the Red-spotted Plant Bug. My attention was next drawn to the call of a Reed Bunting coming from the loch side reed-bed. With some patience I eventually located and photographed it. A Wren’s piercing tones was next to enter my ears and I quickly found it perching low down on the branch of a young tree. My camera caught it as it belted out its tune. A pair of Great Crested Grebes then paddled passed close-by, just as the light of the Sun emerged behind a thick cloud.

Bug - Deraeocoris ruber	Reed Bunting

Wren	Great Crested Grebe

The area by the houses that line the northwest end of the loch had some attractive flowers growing wild: Common Fumitory , a garden “weed”, but nice in its wild setting. A very lovely pink-flowered Hedge Bindweed was clinging to the tall vegetation on the edges of the reedbed opposite the back fences of the houses, where “escapee” flowers such as Foxgloves were growing wild. I spied a Red Admiral butterfly resting on Common Nettles as I decided to photograph a Rosebay Willowherb with the lovely backdrop of Linlithgow Palace.

Common Fumitory	Hedge Bindweed

Foxglove	Yellow Loosestrife

Red Admiral Butterfly	Rosebay Willowherb

Below is a wide-angle view of the Rosebay Willowherb - my final shot of the trip.

It had been very productive week with 43 species photographed. My favourites were the newbie insects, Roe Deer, fungus, the orchid and the Snow Goose. Next week is to be a bit more settled, but I feel that I’ll still be dodging showers.

Week ending: 15th June: Broadwood Loch, Strathclyde Country Park

Stevenston, Irvine Harbour

Monday was a washout, but the weather for the rest of the week looked promising.

Tuesday am, 10th June: Broadwood Loch

I decided to have my morning walk with the camera at the lovely Broadwood Loch in Cumbernauld. It was sunny when I parked at on Atholl Drive, near one entrance to the park.

Cloud	Rain

Courtesy of Weather Pro and BBC Tides

The sky and the loch’s water surface were blue as I set off on my circuit of the loch.

The grass and trees at the entrance has been left uncut in order to promote a healthy natural environment and I noticed Tufted Vetch and also flowering Brambles that were hosting busy Tree Bumblebees. House Sparrows were searching the stoney north banking of the loch for
flies, while a lazy Magpie was tucked in the edge of the long grass, soaking up the sunshine, or was it maybe trying to keep cool.

Tufted Vetch	Tree Bumblebee

Female House Sparrow	Magpie

I was disappointed with the lack of water birds showing at the west side of the loch. It was a bit of relief then when I came to the car park at the south end of the park, where I saw that there were quite a few birds there, mainly Mute Swans.

A Moorhen was nipping between the swans and Black-headed Gulls. A Canada Goose looked at me, probable wondering if I had any bread. There were Coots in the water and, at the edge of the loch, I found the familiar small blue flowers of Water Forget-me-nots. Dominating the water edges
were tall Yellow Flag Irises. The one shown below has a partially-hidden visitor (a bumblebee).

Moorhen	Black - headed Gull

Canada Goose	Coot

Water Forget - Me - Not	Yellow Flag Iris

I continued my walk along the east side of the loch and took a wee rest on a bench at a viewpoint. Once again, though, there weren’t many water birds on the loch.

Further around the loch I passed a small area of Beach Rose bushes. Attracted by the buzzing of bees going crazy amongst the pollen-rich stamens, I started photographing the White-tailed Bumblebees. As a wee bonus, I found Oedemera virescens, one of 4 species False blister
beetles. Further round still, a Goldfinch was singing enthusiastically from the top of a path-side tree. Just as I completed my circuit back at the head of the loch, I encountered a family of Great Crested Grebes. However, they were spooked by a passing dog walker before I could photograph
them properly.

White - tailed Bumblebee	Beetle - Oedemera virescens,

Goldfinch	Great Crested Grebe

Tuesday pm & Sunday, 10th & 15th June: Strathclyde Country Park

Rather disappointed with my relative trickle of sightings at Broadwood, and because the weather was still very pleasant, I ventured out on Tuesday afternoon to Strathclyde Country Park for a wee top-up of sightings. I parked at the Foreshore car park 8 and walked a path that would take me over the footbridge across the South Calder river to a dipping pond where I hoped to see Damselflies and perhaps even Dragonflies. North Lanarkshire Council have an ongoing “Mega flora wildflower project” that seeks to “naturalise and enhance grassland management” in
the county. I passed the latest mass flowerbeds which was mainly populated by Oxeye Daisies.

The daisies were dancing in the breeze and were already proving as popular this year as the were last year. I crossed the footbridge and made my way to the dipping pond. There were Azure Damselflies gently hovering around the edges of the pond. Less delicate were the much larger and faster Four-spotted Chaser dragonflies . Luckily, one dragonfly had a favourite perch only a metre or so from the edge of the pond, and I was able to get some very pleasing pictures. I continued my walk around the loch, but the only other picture I took was of a Common Toadflax plant growing by the Clyde Bridge on the Hamilton Road.

Oxeye Daisy	Azure Damselfly

Dragonfly - Four Spotted Chaser...

Common Spotted Orchid	Common Toadflax

I revisited the park briefly on Sunday. It was much cloudier and I had only a short, late afternoon walk. I’m glad I did, because I found that a Greylag flock contained a surprising visitor.

The bird of which I speak is tricky to pick out in the above wide-angle photo, but at higher magnification you can see that it is a Snow Goose. It is thought (by the SOC) to be of feral origin (the wild ones sometimes migrate here in the winter months, but are rare in the summer, far outnumbered by the feral population). It is currently feeding with one of the Greylag flocks near the Foreshore car park. There are other Greylags with young that I photographed not far from where I saw the Snow Goose. I also snapped a young Pied Wagtail that was feeding along the
water’s edge.

Snow Goose	Juvenile Greylag Goose

Greylag Goose	Juvenile Pied Wagtail

Wednesday, 11th June: Stevenston and Irvine Harbour

On Tuesday night, sunny intervals were promised for Wednesday by the weatherman. So I decided that I’d like a trip to the North Ayrshire coast. So I travelled there on Wednesday morning, arriving at Stevenston Point as the Sun broke through the early clouds.

Cloud	Rain	Tides

Courtesy of Weather Pro and BBC Tides

The picture below shows the view across the East Shore, looking towards Saltcoats.

The tide was fairly high and there weren’t many birds on or around the waters. I did spot a snoozing Dunlin and a few Oystercatchers on the rocks. As I walked around the Point perimeter, I found a half-hidden patch of Yellow Loosestrife. I was just about to snap a Magpie that was sitting on a signpost when it was ‘mobbed’ by some Barn Swallows. However they were chasing it so that they could gather mud from a puddle (presumably for nest building or repair). I also captured shots of a Honey Bee on a white Beach Rose and a wandering Jackdaw.

Dunlin	Oystercatcher

Yellow Loosestrife	Barn Swallow

Honey Bee	Jackdaw

I relocated a short distance to the sand dunes that overlook the East Shore, hoping to see butterflies, flowers or birds there. I got off to a great start when a pair of Stonechats made themselves very visible in defence of a young Stonechat that was calling from a bush. I didn’t hang about and made my way to the top of the dune area. On the way there, I passed white Sea Campion flowers and small violet Sheep’s-bit flowers. I also got a record shot of a Linnet, and also a shot of a Meadow Pipit that thought it was hiding behind grass.

Female Stonechat	Male Stonechat

Sea Campion	Sheep's Bit

Linnet	Meadow Pipit

As I moved along the path through the sand dunes, I passed a shoddy-looking Starling and came upon an area of Beach Roses that were surrounded by overgrown Kidney Vetch. White-tailed Bumblebees were busy on the yellow Kidney Vetch flowers. As I left the dunes I passed a
Common Valerian in flower, one of the first I’ve seen this year.

Starling	White - tailed Bumblebee

Japanese Rose	Common Valerian

Finally, I drove to Irvine Harbour where I got nice views of a Grey Heron standing on the opposite side of the river, before it was startled by a passing jet skier. But once again, there were none of the usual sea birds on show - I suppose they were all reproducing in other places. I had to make do with searching for some more wild flowers that were blooming along the edges of the promenade. Biting Stonecrop, the most common yellow stonecrop, was thriving on the sloping walls near the harbourmasters building. Further along the harbour I found Wild Strawberries under the prom barriers as well as White Campion.

Grey heron	Biting Stonecrop

Wild Strawberry	White Campion

What looked like, at one stage, as being a rather uninteresting week of sightings, ended up being a rather interesting week. My highlights are: the beetle, Oedemera virescens, at Broadwood Loch; the Common Spotted Orchid, Azure Damselfly, Four-spotted Chaser and the fairly rare feral Snow Goose at Strathclyde Park, and the Barn Swallows, Stonechat, Sheep’s-bit and Wild Strawberry at Stevenston and Irvine Harbour. If that’s uninteresting then I’ll hope I have another uninterestingweek next week

Week Ending: 8th June: Hogganfield Park LNR, Strathclyde County Park, RSPB Baron’s Haugh

In a week of changeable weather I managed to get out with my camera to catch the few bright spells and captured some pleasing sightings.
Tuesday and Thursday am, 3rd and 5th June: Strathclyde Country Park

On Tuesday, a sunny gap in the rain was long enough to allow a few shots of the Greylag flock at the north end of Strathclyde Country Park.

The pathways were misting up as the Sun evaporated the freshly fallen rain. But, it was great weather for the Mallard ducklings. A Magpie gave me a stare of indignation as I tracked down a couple of Goldfinches that were nibbling in vegetation near the water’s edge.

	Juvenile Mallard

Magpie	Goldfinch

Below is a view of Strathclyde Loch looking down the watersports lanes, with Tinto Hill just visible about 20 miles to the south.

The weather in the park was a bit drier on Thursday when I snapped a pair of Bullfinches in the hedgerows of the M&D’s fairground car park. As I started my walk there were Red-tailed Bumblebees on the White Clover flowers and on Common Bistort flowers, and in a wild garden beside the football pitches, Tree Bumblebees were busy collecting pollen.

Female Bullfinch	Male Bullfinch

Red - tailed Bumblebee	Tree Bumblebee

I watched two families of Greylags as they left the peace and quiet of the watersport starting bays and paddled to join the main flock on the water. Some pretty Red Poppies and Oxeye Daisies were flourishing on the pebbled loch edges.

Greylag Goose...

Red Poppy	Oxeye Daisy

A huge flock of at least 100 Greylags, Canada Geese and Mute Swans were amassed at the beach near the Foreshore car park.

Wednesday and Friday am, 4th and 6th June: RSPB Baron’s Haugh

Wednesday morning was fairly sunny, but with a cold breeze which made me wish I’d brought my gloves when I visited Baron’s Haugh. On the path into the Marsh Hide I photographed a nicely illuminated Piggyback Plant before I encountered a trio of insects : an Early Bumblebee, and an Azure and a Blue-tailed Damselfly .

Piggyback Plant	Early Bumblebee

Azure Damselfly	Blue - tailed Damselfly

From inside the Marsh Hide I was disappointed at how few birds were on show. I had to settle for a Little Grebe and a distant drake Gadwall. However, on my way to the Causeway Hide my demeanour changed for the better when a Roe Buck came trotting down the field and jumped over the fence, some 10m in front of me.

Little Grebe	Gadwall

Roe Deer...

Sadly though, the view from the Causeway Hide was just as devoid of birds as in the previous hide.

Only the wandering of a line of cattle took my interest.

So I don’t know why I returned there a couple of days later - but I’m glad I did. As I photographed a distant group of Lapwings and Greylags, another birder asked me, “Have you seen the Avocets”? I had not, but I immediately located the pair, each of which was feeding separately,
scooping the water with their curved beaks. Gradually they edged closer and closer until they met at a shallow pool. The female adopted a pose which invited her partner to copulate - which he did. Afterwards they each carried out some nervous preening before resuming their foraging.

Lapwing / Canada Goose	Avocet...

Delighted with my pictures, I decided to check out the River Clyde for Otters that had been seen there earlier in the day. The picture below is a panoramic photo of the river and Haugh, taken using my iPhone camera.

I got a bit excited when an otter-like shape moved across the river. It wasn’t an Otter though, but was an American Mink. It quickly swam onto the near bank and disappeared into the undergrowth.

As I waited optimistically for it to re-emerge, I snapped a shot of a pair of Mute Swans and a large patch of White Clover growing on the recently created overflow channel at the site of the now demolished Phoenix Hide. There being no sign of the Mink, I followed the footpath around behind
the Haugh, following the river upstream. I stopped a few times to photograph a few things that caught my attention. A Speckled Wood butterfly, then a lovely Dog Rose followed by a couple of shots of Small Tortoiseshell butterflies were satisfying (but not as satisfying as a shot of an
Otter).

Mute Swan	White Clover

Speckled Wood Butterfly	Dog Rose ( Wild )

Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly...

My final shot at the river was of a family of Mallards paddling quickly down the Clyde, maybe aware of the presence of humans walking by the riverside.

Back at the car park, I noticed a large Smooth Lady’s Mantle plant. Also, insects were flocking to a large area covered in French Cranesbill plants
including Hoverflies, such as Eristalis Arbustorum, and bees including Carder Bees.

Smooth Lady's Mantle	French Cranesbill

Hoverfly - Eristalis Arbustorum	Common Carder Bumblebee

Thursday pm, 5th June: Hogganfield Park LNR

I made a brief afternoon visit to Hogganfield Park to check out the Great Crested Grebes, which is one of my favourite birds. There were reports of chicks thriving quite close to the main path, and sure enough, as soon as I arrived there was a Great Crested Grebe family only about 40m from
the car park - male and female adults plus two juveniles - sometimes within two metres of the path. They were very entertaining to watch and I took quite a few pictures.

Great Crested Grebe...

Besides the grebes, I snapped a juvenile Cormorant which was perching on the stances in the middle of the loch. A lot closer was one of several juvenile Coots dipping for pondweed, and a young Moorhen was foraging beside me as I stood on the bank with my camera. On my constitutional walk around the loch I encountered a Whitethroat on the east side of the park.

Juvenile Cormorant	Juvenile Coot

Juvenile Moorhen	Whitethroat

Despite some spells of weather, it was a successfull week with 40 species photographed. My favourites were the Roe Deer, Avocet and Mink at Baron's Haugh, ther Bullfinches at Strathclyde Park and the Great Crested Grebes and Whitethroat at Hogganfield. The weather for next week is predicted to be warmer for a time - that would be nice.

Week Ending: 1st June Strathclyde Park , Maidens, James Hamilton Heritage Park

Several weeks of gorgeous weather finally came to an end and it was back to “sunshine and showers”.

Tuesday, 27th May: Strathclyde Country Park

I had a brief walk in Strathclyde country Park in between showers. I came across the unusual Yellow Rattle flowers and Common Figwort, with its small brown flowers, at the side of the path that starts at the other side of the footbridge across the river Clyde and leads to South
Haugh, Hamilton. On the same section of path there was also Broad-leaved Willowherb. The path runs under the Motherwell Road and continues alongside the River Clyde. On its bonny banks I found the hoverfly, Volucella pellucens, sunbathing on a Hogweed flowerhead.

Yellow Rattle	Common Figwort

Broad - leaved Willowherb	Hoverfly - Volucella Pellucens

In the same section of riverbank I snapped the Root Maggot Fly, possibly Hylemya alcathoe, as it sat on Common Nettle flowers. Nearby, Carder Bees were busy searching for pollen in Common Comfrey flowers. Eventually I retraced my steps back to Strathclyde Park and I finished my photography session with a shot of Germander Speedwell flowers, followed by a pleasing shot of a nervous Blackbird on a tree branch.

Fly - Hylemya Alcathoe	Common Carder Bumblebee

Germander Speedwell	Blackbird

Wednesday, 28th May: Maidens

Since the weather forecast for southwest Scotland was fairly optimistic, predicting sunny intervals, I considered going somewhere on the Ayrshire coast. Social media had reports of a Western Sandpiper at Maidens, so that is where I headed.

Cloud	Rain	Tides

Courtesy of Weather Pro and BBC Tides

However, it was unfortunate that, when I had arrived, the in-coming tide had already flooded the harbour basin and was still on their rise. The unwanted outcome of this was that all of the waders that I had wished to photograph had stopped feeding and were effectively hiding among the
boulders on the northern periphery of the harbour.

A band of birdwatchers were assembled on the foreshore, their telescopes pointed towards the boulders. I trekked out of the car park to join them. Bramble buds were starting to flower and a few Mallards and Mute Swans were on the harbour waters. I briefly watched lively antics of House Sparrows as they moved about a patch of low bushes that bordered the harbour.

Bramble	Mute Swan

Mallard	House Sparrow

Once I’d reach the assembled birders it was obvious that the waders were well-hidden. The light wasn’t good either, so I reckoned that they might be found more easily from the harbour, and by the time I’d walked over the Sun might appear. As I set off, a pair of Shelducks flew in and began
feeding….

…. They quickly flew off though, probably when they noticed the crowd of birdwatchers. I noticed a rather lonely clump of Lupins growing at the side of the harbour. It was well outnumbered by the many clumps of Sea Radish plants.

Male Sherduck	Female Shelduck

Lupin	Sea Radish

When I got to the harbour a wee Rock Pipit was on the harbour wall. A couple of Eiders appeared near the harbour mouth and a lone Oystercatcher stood at the far end of the breakwater.

Rock Pipit	Drake Eider

Female Eider	Oystercatcher

Below is a view of the aforementioned breakwater, as seen from the end of the harbour:

I positioned myself safely near the harbourside on my faithful 3-legged stool and set my camera zoom to its highest setting (equivalent to 2000m focal length) and began scanning the line of boulders opposite. It wasn’t long until some small wader activity was seen, albeit at about 60m
away: Dunlins, Ringed Plovers and the Western Sandpiper , which was, unfortunately, snoozing with its head tucked under its wing. Eventually the waders moved to the far side of the boulders. So after I snapped a female Mallard that perhaps displaced some of the waders, I decided to return to the other side of the harbour.

Ringed Plover	Dunlin

Western Sandpiper ( Left) / Ringed Plover	Female Mallard

Below shows the view of the breakwater as seen from the north side of the harbour.

I positioned myself where I could see the north side of the row of boulders where the waders were thought to be sheltering. I located a large group of Ringed Plovers and Dunlins that were tucked behind small rocks about 40m from where I was standing.

The Western Sandpiper was spotted once again, and once again its head was under its wing. There was a fairly extensive thicket of Beach Roses with many bees attending their flowers, such as the Tree Bumblebee shown below. I headed back to the car somewhat disappointed that I hadn’t managed a decent shot of the Western Sandpiper, when I overheard a conversation between two of the experienced birders. They were of the opinion that the Western Sandpiper was mis-identified as an over-wintering Little Stint which had been at Maidens since the winter.
Hadn’t I photographed that “Little Stint”? I checked my blog and I had indeed snapped that bird. I’ve now renamed it as a Western Sandpiper (shown below with a Dunlin and a Ringed Plover).

Western Sandpiper / Ringed Plover	Western Sandpiper / Dunlin

Tree Bumblebee	Japanese Rose

While I was at the rose thicket, the waders were disturbed and had flown over to the breakwater. The Sandpiper wasn’t amongst them though.

Wednesday 28th May: James Hamilton Heritage Park

On my way home, the weather was still sunny, so I popped into the James Hamilton Heritage Park in East Kilbride to see what I could photograph there. I’m glad I did since the first birds I met were Greylag goslings pecking their way along the grass verges.

Of course their protective adult Greylags were in attendance, as were some Mallards.


	Mallard

Next I met Canada Goose goslings pecking the grass.

Their adults were blocking the path of walkers - who didn’t really mind because they were fascinated with the young birds. The birds slowly paraded along the pathway, accompanied by opportunistic Magpies and Jackdaws on the look out for easy food.


Magpie	Jackdaw

Eventually I managed to get past the Canada Geese and on my circuit of the loch I stopped at the west end where there was a family of Mute Swans in the water of the small nature reserve. An attractive bank of Yellow Flag Irises also caught my eye. A Grey Heron was prowling on the east
side of the reserve, searching for small fish, amphibians and invertebrates. I was surprised to find a small Northern Marsh Orchid on the north bank of the loch. I stopped also at a patch of Water Forget-me-nots which was being visited by Tree Bumblebees.

Juvenile Mute Swan	Yellow Flag Iris

Grey Heron	Northern Marsh Orchid

Water Forget - Me - Not	Tree Bumblebee

The next two pictures are views of the south side of the park showing Mains Castle…

… and the Watersports Centre:

It was a fairly enjoyable and productive couple of days in which I photographed 37 species. Apart from the delightful realisation that I’d already photographed the Western Sandpiper, my favourite moments were seeing the hoverfly, root maggot-fly and Blackbird at Strathclyde Park,
the waders at Maidens and the goslings and cygnets at East Kilbride. I look forward to thechallenge of photographing birds, insects and flowers etc. between the showers predicted for next week.

Highlights - June 2025

We present this month’s gallery of my favourite pictures I’ve taken during June 2025. They are not listed in the order they have been taken, but according to a series of themes. I’ve kept commentary to a minimum, preferring to let each picture talk for itself.

WINGS