burying the dead

 

I am running out of cemetery based titles for blogs about Warriston. It is exactly a mile from my home and has provided endless hours of wildlife exploration and deep joy through the Winter and Lockdown so I keep going back. Even on days like the 18th Feb when the weather was a bit iffy and most of the pics (still labouring away with the TZ100, how antiquated!) are pretty average. However I had fun on that day and want to log it here for posterity, but I'll make it brief.

There are many robins in Warriston who largely stick to their territories. They all look nearly identical so I only recognise with any certainty the East Gate "friendly" robin who has an invasive patch of grey on the right of his orange bib, the ringed robin who appears at the feeding area, and this one which I recognise from its location by the river. It will take food from my hand, although there is at least one other in the same area that is shy and flighty.

bread and gravy?

Always a pleasure to see the woodpeckers, this time a female (no red on back of head) although it was way up the tree tops and then flew off never to be seen again. 

the only butterfly seen today

Quiz time: On which family grave does this butterfly appear? Clues: one of the most famous people buried in Warriston, a well known local person who developed the use of a product that has benefitted millions. The snake eating its tail might be a clue. Answer at the bottom of the page.

In Graham's secret garden there are 4 brick towers with a water dish and platforms for leaving birdfood. Sometimes I'll put out food; seeds, worms and bread and then stand back and take photos of the birds that appear. My homemade seeded bread is often the most popular, even with the squirrels. On this occasion I was putting out some bread and while I was at the second table this fearless robin swooped down over my shoulder and took some inches from my hand then hopped to other end of the brick. I had my camera in my hand so put it on and fired off a couple of shots from the hip because if I raised it to my face the bird would almost certainly fly off. It was just inches away from where I was standing. I tried to zoom in and get an even closer shot but this was the only shot that worked. It could only have been closer by hopping into my pocket!

Later, the same one, or another nearly identical, flew onto the water-dish and washed its feet before hopping onto the rim and taking a drink. There weren't that many species about today and the light was pretty grey so I didn't hang about. Always a joy to wander about the place and say hello to the robins. 

Hadn't noticed this unusual mosaic on the cyclepath bridge.
I had a feeling I'd seen the image before but couldn't place it.
Like a publishers logo or something?

spray paint art nearby

Yes, of course, the famous family grave in Warriston with a butterfly emblem is that of James Young Simpson who developed the use of chloroform as an anaesthetic. Wiki-entry here. Died age 58 - my age!