Surprises at Shell Bay

 Examining the lichen on this rock at Shell Bay, I suddenly was aware of the 'crocodile' lying on top.

A little further along the beach another surprise.


The bright yellow patches are yellow splash lichen - Xanthoria parietina. I think that the grey patches are black shields - Tephromela atra.

Finally I picked up a horseshoe which I found on a path through the woods. It was covered in sand and mud and still had some nails attached but it's polished up quite well. Maybe it will be a lucky one for 2017.

Largo Bay at Dusk

 Never tire of the views of the sun setting over Largo Bay

From left to right on the horizon, parked oil platforms, the Pentland hills and the giant wind turbine at Methil.

The sun lights up the wet sand.

Light and shade in the black and white photo.

A young swan, still with it grey feathers, stands alone at the edge of the tide.

Birnie and Gaddon Lochs on Christmas Day

Looking through the trees at Birnie Loch.
With the tail end of Storm Barbara still blowing decided it was too windy for a beach walk and went instead to the nature reserve of Birnie and Gaddon Loch.

 Plenty of bird life, mute swans and various ducks

A young  mute swan still with some grey feathers.

Fungi on a dead tree trunk.

The Queen's View

Very cold and frosty weather (-5°C) in Pitlochry last week but we were rewarded with sparkling views. The Queen's view in particular was spectacular.

Icy Small Waterfall

Although most of the frost had gone by yesterday afternoon, there was still some sculptural ice at the side of the little waterfall in the middle of the Serpentine Walk.

Autumn 2016 in the Serpentine Walk

Autumn colours in the Serpentine Walk

A viburnum tree with red leaves and red berries.

Autumn is also a good time to see fungi.

A Far-Travelled Butterfly

 A painted lady butterfly enjoying the early October sunshine on valerian flowers in the garden. It is a migrant from North Africa. There is a programme on BBC 4 tonight about the extaordinary journey that it makes.