WoL flowers

 

18-10-26 Nothing planned to intercept the decent forecast so I hopped on a late morning tram and got off at Balgreen not much before midday. A walk I've done lots before, usually with Mary, but solo today. Round Saughton Park and upstream a little then back down the Water of Leith to the Botanics and home. I didn't expect to see much and wasn't disappointed. Or was I.

Balgreen tram stop, looking back towards town

a depository of pigeons

I was nearly tempted to head onto Corstorphine Hill as the trees there are always worth a look at this time of year. But there is no escape route that produces a satisfying circuit other than back to the main road and a bus home. The long walk down Ravelston Dykes and onto the cyclepath, terminally boring.

Saughton Park was not overly busy considering it was a Sunday. I also found a decent condition red admiral on some asters and photographed the hell out of it. Pretty much the last one of the year (again) if you don't count the tatty specimen along the riverside and the further two highvy ones nearer home.

There were lots of lovely flowers, shrubs and trees at Saughton, a pleasure to walk around the well maintained borders. I couldn't find much at all after the admiral - very few hovers and no other butterflies and rather disappointingly walked back round to the admiral I'd seen earlier and took a load more pics of it. Come on Buchanan you are better than that. Let's go hunt kingfishers, otters and dippers. Actually I am not that interested in otters as they are brown and slippery and rarely pose well for photos. Often seen skooshing downstream like so much effluent. 

As the RA was quickly flitting between flower heads I set up the pre-burst mode for take off shots. Possibly the final ones of the year. There was some success but I spent more time cursing under my breathe as it seemed to deliberately misbehave by flying off at the wrong angles straight out the frame or the focal plane.

This heron was having a break from the river. It was stood snoozing and preening in the sun on the flattened building site near where the sheltered housing used to stand. There were a couple of dudes just upstream and they noticed I was taking photos and then they noticed the heron and we got chatting about what sort of bird it was. I had noticed the 2 lads earlier and wasn't sure if it was a grindr date or a drugs deal and best not stare too much wondering which. I walked past them as they came downstream to capture the heron on their mobile phones - which was just the other side of the wall and railing. I noticed the dudes had left a large lit spliff on the wall with their Irn Bru bottle. Okay that explained why they were some way off the beaten track. It was a beautifully rolled specimen and I nearly asked for a puff on it. But wimped out. 

your other national hobby

There was nothing further upstream and so after a quick look I turned around and went back downstream. The smokers had long gone and there was nothing more of note until the bowling greens down near the next tunnel where a couple of rabbits were enjoying the closely cropped grass. From the path side they were 30 yards away, although I saw they were about 5 yards from the fence on the far side. It's not as exotic as kingfishers or kestrels but may be the only wild animals today. I wandered round the far side as quietly as possible though did not take them surprise. Those big ears not just for show then.

round the other side
closer, but carefully observed

they kept near to the hedge for a quick escape if necessary

robin says you're onto a loser there mate
they are not as stupid as they look!

sparrows

reduced to taking pics of berries

fungi at Murrayfield

I noticed Sachi (another super-keen wildlife photographer) coming along at Murrayfield. The sun was in her eyes so she didn't see me until I practically stood in her path. We chatted about all the stuff we'd seen and about Ember buses and the Tay Reed Beds. (She has since used Ember buses combined with a stagecoach from St Madoes to Errol to successfully photograph the beardies.) Then we both walked downstream together for a mile. I was hoping Sachi would be able to point out the foxes, kestrels and buzzard she has photographed regularly around the next mile. However not much was about today. But she was able to show me where to look on subsequent riverside safaris, which is all good info.

Just after Roseburn we saw this dipper and although too far away for quality photos we were close enough to hear it singing and I shot some (non-slo-mo) video to capture its song, only just audible above the rushing water. Difficult to know whether to hang around hoping it comes closer or move on. We moved on.

There was no kingfisher between Roseburn and the gallery bridge. Apparently it hasn't been seen here for a while. I had a good look at the other side of the gallery bridge for commas as there can be one on the flowers there in April at the beginning of the season. I hoped there might be one now around the cyclamen but alas, no comma. 

Eristalis tenax, drone fly

Guelder rose, Viburnum opulus

I felt these reflections could be improved with a kingfisher
but apart from one flying by at great speed - no sign

gormers

tatty RA near Dean Village

Hygea looking fine
and St Bernard's well

stockeroo

12-string santa

I diverted into Inverleith Park hoping something worth a photo would be on the pond. Not really, although this coot came close. Six Sikhs were playing a lively game of volleyball; deliveroo bikes parked next to the court.

a much better game than football?!
certainly looked more appealing to me

lots of great colours in the Botanics
although it was getting late and I was really more interested in getting home

a favourite small ginkgo biloba tree
looks great against a blue sky

ceratostigma minus butterflies

fruit bearing citrus tree of some sort in the rock garden

In St Marks I emptied the last of the bird seeds out my pocket attracting some attention from the crow gang and, of course, the black-eyed pigeons. Mary's name for the stock doves. Limpy was there (one of five stock doves present) and has developed a high stepping goose-step. But looked a little scruffy and maybe undernourished. See video.

jackdaw

hybrid hooded / carrion crow

Corvus corone cornix x Corvus corone corone!!!

I am told all the Lothian crows with this grey colouration are hooded/carrion hybrids. I have no idea how the hooded population has snuck in to interbreed with the all black carrion crows without being seen locally. Could it be a migration thing? Looking at the rspb dispersion map the nearest hoodies can be found in Winter down the Dunbar to Berwickshire coast. They seem to look much like this but with a slightly lighter more comprehensive grey patch, leaving only head tail and wings black.

I thought I'd fool Obsidentify with these pics assuming they'd say hooded crow but they correctly ID-ed this one as a hybrid. This solitary hybrid had no trouble mixing with the all black crew and didn't seem singled out.

Walking back through Powderhall Rigg I found the two red admirals I'd previously found in the high wall-mounted ivy beside the coniferous tree. I wonder if they survived the torrential rain of Storm Boelo? I presume they have some sense of lowering air pressure and take refuge beforehand.

could be another candidate for the last one of the season although this coming week
 the temps go back up, the rain stops (hopefully) and the sun comes out Thursday

RA, heron, dipper singing, drone fly, limpy the stock dove, 
soundtrack: Sunlite by Catching Flies

so a pleasant day out with plenty sunshine 
if a little thin on wildlife

8.6miles in 5hrs

230th activity of the year says Suunto