Seal Close to Shore

This grey seal was basking on a rock very close to the shore opposite the golf course in Lundin Links. It seemed to be enjoying the attention of bystanders on the beach.

Sea Rocket

A clump of sea rocket (Cakile maritima) growing at the top of the beach in front of the Temple Car Park in Lower Largo. A member of the cabbage family (Cruciferae) it has fleshy succulent leaves which conserve water. It will tolerate being covered by sand and will grow through it. It is an annual and its seeds, which are resistant to salt are dispersed by the tides. It is usually found at or just above the strand line.

Meadow Brown Butterflies

Two meadow brown butterflies doing what butterflies do. Amazingly they had been flying joined together and came to rest in the bracken at the edge of the disused railway track in Lower Largo. The male has brighter colours than the female below.

Coastal Erosion

Just beyond the last house at the Temple area of Lower Largo there is an area of erosion where the bank is collapsing.

This small section of an old sea-wall was intact until a few months ago but now the central part has collapsed as has the banking behind it (see below). The coastal path runs a few feet above this on the disused railway track,

Views from the Walk to Dumbarnie Links

 Looking inland to Largo Law

 Looking across the Forth to North Berwick Law

 A nice sky over Largo Bay

 Lochans in Dumbarnie Links. Normally these are seen in the winter, but we had so much rain in the early part of August that the water-table must be very high.

The hard heads and yellow flowers make a colourful display. Yellow daisy flowers are difficult to identify but I think from the lanceolate leaves that these are smooth sow thistle

More Butterflies

Red admiral butterfly on clematis in the garden.

A common blue butterfly in Dumbarnie Links.

 Small copper butterfly at the top of the Massney Braes in Lundin Links - so pretty and dainty

 Peacock butterfly on hard head flower along the disused railway track in Lower Largo.

Small tortoiseshell on hard head flower again along the railway track. The hard heads were attracting butterflies wasps, bees and hover flies.

Tidal Sand Ripples

One of the best things about the beach between Lundin Links and Lower Largo is that it is constantly changing; the sand shifts, pebbles and seaweed move around. I love the varying ripple patterns made by the tides.

Rock Striations

On the shore between Lundin Links and Lower Largo Pier, there are some interesting rock formations. In this one above different coloured bands of sandstone can be seen shading from grey to reds and purples as in the more detailed photos below.

More Hover-flies

The larger fly on the right is a drone-fly (Eristalis tenax). The smaller one is the hover-fly (Episurphus balteatus) - see 8th August post. They are both feeding on ragwort in the Serpentine Walk. 

Hover-fly (Scaeva pyrastri) on a campanula flower in thegarden.

Some Largo Bay Shore Life

A beadlet sea anemone with its tentacles out above and below some as they are usually seen contracted into a jelly-like blob.

The tubes of a worm probably the sand mason worm (Lanice conchilega). The tubes are built of sand grains cemented with mucous. An individual tube below.

From a distance this rock looks black but it is actually covered in thousands of tiny mussels.

An edible crab stranded on the beach.

Painted Ladies

 A painted lady butterfly sunning itself on the path at the top of the Massney Braes. Didn't realise I had also captured a wasp at the same time.

Another painted lady on the sandy path through the braes. Unable to survive the European winter, it is a migrant from North Africa.

Yet More Rain!!

After another 48 hours of rain the Keil Burn is in full spate this evening. The water was rushing over the pipe in the middle of the photo which was taken from the bridge in Largo Road in Lundin Links. Normally the water level is around a foot below the pipe. 

Note the pink flowers of the Indian Balsam on both sides of the burn (Click to enlarge photo). Indian or Himilayan balsam is a native of the Himilayas. It has spread rapidly in Britain since its introduction to Britain as a garden plant in 1839. It particularly favours stream  and river banks.

Looking into a Whelk Shell

Common Whelk or Buckie. (Buccinum undatum)
Empty whelk shells are common on the beach in Largo. However this one was on the pier and I was surprised when I turned it over to find the whelk still inside. Possibly it had been dredged up with a creel. The foot can just be seen behind the round operculum with which it can close the opening of the shell.

Hover-fly

Hover-fly (Episyrphus balteatus) on St Johns Wort.

I think this is a male because the eyes meet at the top of the head. The wasp-like colours deter predators although the fly is harmless and does not sting.

After Summer Rain

24 hours of heavy rain in Eastern Scotland. The little waterfall at the intersection of the paths in the Serpentine Walk in Lower Largo had been down to a trickle but today it was in full flow.

Blue Heaven

Patches of blue along the disused railway track in Lower Largo. The Scottish bluebell, also called a harebell. It's actually a campanula (Campanula rotundifolia).

 Large patches of meadow cranesbill (Geranium pratense) along the side of the track.

The patches of scabious were attracting bees and butterflies and also the six-spot burnett moth.