Bawsinch

13th April
I'd been hearing and seeing posts from local wildlife enthusiasts about Bawsinch Nature Reserve at Duddingston. You have to have a key from SWT to get in. Or go there as a guest of someone who has a key. Ken, a member, said he'd show me around, so we met (always at a good distance) and I spent a while wandering around in peaceful sunny bliss, only the very occasional other, and they were mostly birders who hang out at different places from the butterfly spotters. 

I wasn't fighting the butterflies off. There were quite a few and a good variety, but you could go 20 mins without taking a photo. There were supposed to be a couple of resident commas. The one I saw (on several occasions I think?), was easily spooked and difficult to get close to. When it took off it flew quickly and didn't land close by. 20 mins later it might be the same one you find next time passing. But was then off, deliberately flying swiftly over a bramble strewn morass making it impossible to follow. There was no shortage of Small Ts most of them next to the moat and wall that run the length of the Innocent Railway. You could hear the shouts and chat of passing cyclists and families.

I missed the shot of the day; a peacock on the blossom.
Too slow, it flew off, as I rummaged through the undergrowth beneath!

I didn't notice this aberration (more black on forewing than usual)
until it was pointed out to me later.

After describing the layout and likeliest haunts Ken and I spent most of the visit apart, doing our own thing. He returned to tell me he had found a speckled wood and if I followed at a distance he would point it out. It was still near to where he had found it and I got a couple of bad photos before it flew off. First one of the year. I have seen a couple more since outwith the reserve, but on both occasions failed to get photos. 

After another round with the comma and a couple more photos we called it a day. I joined the Scottish Wildlife Trust a while back with a view to getting access to this reserve. Hopefully I will get a key sometime before the Summer is over. It is a lovely place, more wild and woolly than the Botanics or Dr Neil's Garden. Great for getting away from busy areas and the bustle of the city for a quiet walk surrounded by nature. 

lockdown lard and local beauties

Despite the C19 horrors we have actually had quite a decent Spring. Still a few grey days about but if you are not working and can choose your moments for your daily exercise it has been quite sunny. (Albeit with a background radiation of C19 doom and gloom.) But the wildlife has been appearing. I have been enjoying the benefits of Holyrood Park and all the emerging wildlife. Trying to pick the sunniest moments and find the best of the uncrowded spots. (Top tip: avoid the Innocent Motorway.)

One of the places to check out (new to me) is Wells o'Weary. You'll have seen the ponds just off the Innocent Railway underneath Samson's Ribs. It was Ken D who pointed them out as being part of Holyrood and not the private property of the cottage next door. There is an unofficial path through to an unlocked gate onto the golf course. They seem to have great potential although apart from a crowd free pleasant wander past a couple of nesting Canada Geese, and a couple of resident butterflies, as yet have not yielded as many delights as, for instance, Bawsinch reserve nearby.

Sweetly shines the sun on auld Edinbro’ toun.
And mak’s her look young and cheerie;
Yet I maun awa’ to spend the afternoon
At the lanesome Wells o’ Wearie.

the resident Tortoiseshell


Mr Goose

Mother (to be) Goose

the resident peacock

sunbathing rodent

Here are some photos from a run with Mary round Holyrood, when we did some hills and saw some stuff...

next to student housing

up the crags

Mary, Hunters Bog

M balances a tiny bloke on her face

small white

the gorse was exploding with coconutty goodness

Ken F

happily we didn't bump into anyone else on this narrow path above Duddingston

Eóin Lto

 

No shortage of Peacocks and Small Tortoiseshells in Holyrood. Mary and I found a small patch of butterbur that was heaving with them only a couple of hundred yards from Holyrood Palace. Mary has a growing enthusiasm for taking butterfly pics but has not yet started attending Butterflies Anonymous meetings. She recently was looking through some old photos from previous hard drives and found I was taking butterfly photos back in 2007 when I wouldn't have even known their names.

wee patch of joy near Holyrood Palace

macro!

 

I also had a notion to check out the parks and cemetery near Regents Road. They are well maintained with lots of flowers and trees in blossom, but probabaly not wild enough (no nettles) to accommodate more than a passing specimen. But worth a look on a sunny day. The flowering heather was providing lots of interest for STs and peacocks but there was a problem with this patch...

....it was inside this fence, chin high and not easily climbable.
I had a search round the back to see if there was an easier access point.

There was a gate round the back into the cemetery I think. I stopped short at this vision lying on the ground. Then I realised it was just a stuffed dummy. Legs superbly realistic but the upper needed a lot of work. Those sunglasses should be up on the face, and the arms need more work, and as I walked over to have a closer look I realised it was indeed a sleeping person. They had retracted their arms under their hoody and wore a mask or hat or something over their face. I was glad I hadn't walked over and kicked "it". Nice spot to sleep off a hangover. 

one way to social distance

not everyone has survived lockdown 😭

enjoying empty streets