Long time no blog

but I'm here today with a few pics of a great week of birding in the Highlands of Scotland and Orkney, and some poetry inspired by a very lovely group of people and some even lovelier birds, flowers and geography.

Navigating in Bird

What's that? Where? Over there

attracts a withering look from our guide

and a plea to make use of the clock.

Midday is ahead, add distance, a height

and then when you spot a small dot

on a pine in Tomvaich or Brodgar,

wonder if that's an eider on the water,

when the Skua moves as your bins focus in

or a Puffin breaks the boil of summer sea

you call two o'clock, low, fifty, flying right,

four o'clock, five o'clock, going and gone o'clock.

On Orkney

Leaving the shore at Yesnaby

we cross the peat soft meadow

to look for Primula Scotica.

Under our feet, stars of spring squill,

ruby thyme, golden vetch

hug the ground, and our quest

nests between these common plants,

it's saucers of bright leaves the setting

for rings of fairy amethyst.

On the horizon

the feeding frenzy rises

a triangle of fin

Against the tide

a seal in grey water

head up, swimming

On the ledge above

the guillemots, three puffins

shuffle shuffle in the nest