Sunday 17 August 2014

If you go down to the woods today...

The big surprise, this being Orkney, is that there was a wood to go to, in any direction. Ok, I suppose Olav's Wood isn't that large, but in the context of the supposedly treeless Orkney, it is a veritable forest.

Located in a valley on the east side of South Ronaldsay, the wood is a mixture of habitats and planting. Late Summer (as it is here) probably wasn't the best time to sample its delights, but as a means to escape a stiff northerly wind, it fitted the bill perfectly.


Paths wind sinuously through scrub and wood

Bench, bridge, burn

The path often runs alongside the burn

A small glade between conifer, willow and rose

Rosa rugosa avenue

Common Carder Bee on Devilsbit Scabious

We are still in Orkney, aren't we?

6 comments:

Spadger said...

Very nice little hidey hole for migrants. Id get yourself down there on regular basis over the next few months especially after favourable east/north east/west/south west winds. Oh and mug up on your US passerines! The eastern stuffs easy coz its in Collins, as is some of the western stuff, but .... An excuse to visit the library (Sibley guide to Eastern US or the Sibley guide to all US species will be next best thing.
Oh, is it very hot along the burn ;o)
Also, re your previous blog about invasive non-natives: R rugosa - ahhhh!!!!

Imperfect and Tense said...

He he he, the R rugosa is where we found the bird ringing station, so it can't be all bad!

Spadger said...

You should also take up vis-miging at this time of year! It can be very rewarding

Katie (Nature ID) said...

Oh! There's a "forest"? What kind of trees are those in the last picture?

Katie (Nature ID) said...

ps - In case you can't get to the library, the best US online bird site is Cornell's All About Birds: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/search.aspx
I don't know if they note which ones head over your way, however.

Imperfect and Tense said...

They're some sort of piney conifer-type tree-y thing. Dunno :o(

Thanks for the weblink. There's been an American Golden Plover on North Ron for a while, tucked in amongst the more usual Golden Plovers.