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Another Wave of Trees
Never one to admit that perhaps I’ve bitten off more than I can chew, I received a further three hundred and fifty trees for the Chayne this afternoon. These are largely blackthorn and hawthorn for the new hedge, but there is also half a box of downy birch trees which are going in on an… Continue reading
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Peak District Day Trip
There was an early start to the Peak District on Friday for some work with the Heather Trust. The 6:15 train from Dumfries is something like the waiting room for the afterlife, populated by lost souls who fell once fell asleep on a train in Glasgow and then slipped between the seats when the cleaners… Continue reading
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Vermin Woes
Now is the key time for catching up with foxes and stoats before the spring really takes off. A friend advised me to try working Mk. 4s along the tops of drystane dykes, and I’ve been setting some of these up (as above) over the past few days, but while I’ve been having some luck… Continue reading
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Snaring ID Numbers
It’s taken three weeks and a maddening amount of paperwork, but I have finally received a snaring ID number through the post. I would be happy to publish it here, but given that I am now responsible for every snare in Scotland bearing that number, I’d rather not broadcast it. It’s one of the major… Continue reading
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Mega-Buck
Just worth re-emphasising the value of having your camera with you at all times. Heading up to the Chayne this evening, I spotted this roe buck standing on the burn-side above me, and managed to swing the camera lens onto him as he gazed insolently down at the car. I don’t know much about deer,… Continue reading
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Prematurity
It’s almost that time of year again – the season when every wild-eyed black grouse enthusiast is up and about before dawn, trekking into obscure corners of the countryside and crawling through the undergrowth to get a closer look at those dearest of all birds. Although in my enthusiasm, perhaps I started a little early… Continue reading
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Photography Kit
Digital photography has changed the way we look at images. There are now people across the country with equipment that would make David Bailey gasp in astonishment, and photographs are now such an everyday thing that (for the most part) we don’t even bother to print them off our computers. The nature of my work… Continue reading
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A Notion for Redshank
For someone who was born and raised within sight of the Solway Firth, I am supremely ignorant on the subject of wading birds. Each year, hundreds of bird watchers come to the Solway to see the waders, and each year I manage to let the entire spectacle pass me by. I attempt to mask my… Continue reading
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Home Turf
A pair of partridges remains stolidly resident in the remnants of my game cover crop. I’m delighted that these birds have stayed around as long as they have, although extended absences have sometimes made me suspect that I’m dealing with wild birds (of which there are one or two still going about on the hill).… Continue reading
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The First of the Drummers
Just worth noting that I heard the first drumming snipe of the year this evening on the Chayne – It was a lone bird, drumming intermittently over the course of five minutes before dropping back down to earth again. It is precisely a year to the day since I heard the first bird last year… Continue reading
About
“Shout on, Morgan. You’ll be nothing tomorrow”
Swn y galon fach yn torri, 1952
Also at: https://andtheyellowale.substack.com
Bog Myrtle & Peat 