No Banana Bill

Sunday April 30

Seven Moths in the trap this morning. Five macros and two micros. We potted them and left them in the fridge (accepted as humane !) to be identified later. One is an Early Tooth-stripe, 1 Red Chestnut, 1 Common Quaker, 1 Hebrew Character. The 2 Micros are for later.....
I looked up the Moray region Butterfly Conservation website this morniing and then contacted the local Moth Recorder  - who lives in this road !
This is the correspondence: 

Hello


We are up from Norfolk, staying in Kinchurdy Road - Craigowrie Cottage - until next Friday and moth trapping every night. I've brought a 40watt actinic suitcase trap. We trapped 7 species last night, 2  micros, 1 a Hebrew Character. The others will be ID'd when we come back from birding the coast.

We are very keen to see Kentish Glory and I'm very disappointed to miss next weekend's trapping at Loch Insh.

Any advice you can give would be very welcome - I quite understand if you ignore this mail !!!
sincerely
Anne Mansfield.
Hello Anne,


I also live in Kinchurdy Road at Allasdale. I had my trap out last night but following a prolonged period of cold weather the catch was very low with just nine species. I had been hoping to get a Kentish Glory as I usually get one or two a year in the garden so keep trying and do please let me know if you get one. If I get one at home I will let you know so that you can have a look at it.


The most reliable site to find the moth locally is amongst the young birches between the two railway lines on Granish Moor near Aviemore at NH9014 and NH9015. It is possible to see the moths by day as they occasionally perch on the end twigs of the small birch trees. Access the site is along the track past the recycling depot then crossing the main line railway over a small bridge, turn left at that point and the area is ahead by approximately 500 metres.


The other good site is Culbin Forest on the Moray coast with easy access to many suitable areas from the Wellhill car park at NH997614. I found one flying by day in that car park about ten days ago so a good area to start any search.


I would be very grateful for any records that you can provide following your stay and am happy to help should you need anything identifying.


Best wishes,


Mike Taylor
What a gentleman. 
Back to birds and the Highlands.
Destination Portsoy where we have seen White-billed Diver (Banana Bill) for the last five years. We set the SatNav, travelling the shortest way possible with the intention of birding the north east coast on the way back. It was a fast and scenic route, arriving at the typically Scottish fishing town of Portsoy soon after 10.30. We set up our scopes at the eastern end of the very attractive 17C harbour.

Only a small section
One other taciturn birder, a Hello and that was it. An hour and a half of eye-watering scoping later - cold wind - we called it a day. A good sprinkling of auks, mainly Guillemots, fewer Razorbills, Puffins the minority. A constant procession of my beloved Gannets, Fulmar, Kittiwakes and Eider. No Divers at all, most unusual.
Pam's eye was atracted by the very elegant Dolphin sculpture on an outcrop. The harbours are extensive, we eventually found a way to view the beast.


The western end of town has the working fishing boat harbour with all the untidily attractive detritus associated with working vessels.

We ate lunch at Cullen, much amused by everything being named Cullen. Cullen Hotel, winners of the Cullen Skink World Championship, Cullen Chippy, Cullen Stores etc etc, you get the picture.
In front of us was a piece of driftwood I'd like in the garden........ 


We both enjoy Spey Bay, eastern bank. So do many others. We managed to get a parking place overlooking the estuary, seeing, 25+ Goosanders, Arctic and Common Terns, Dunlin, Goldeneye, Turnstone, Wheatear, Swallows and Sand Martins. Lovely.
Via Lossiemouth, and Hopeman we drove to Burghead, another happy hunting ground of the past. Very few birds again, more auks and Gannets, a few Rock Pipits and little else. The working harbour is lovely, designed by Thomas Telford along with its imposing grain stores.
Time to drive home, via Lochindorb !!!
There, we met Ian, a leader at Heatherlea, we also meet on Uist.  He had a vanful of this week's group. He showed us a potted Emperor moth he'd just found. What a beauty. We have to phone him if we get a Kentish Glory !
I asked Pam to stop on Carrbridge road bridge so that I could scan the river. She crossed the road to photo the old Carrbridge, this is its 300th anniversary - Pam has probably taken that many photos over the years.
Well downstream Pam spotted a preening Dipper which I had a go at photographing. I then noticed, directly below me, a female Goosander, fishing. She seemed to have no trouble at all swimming upriver against a very strong current. She even made her way sideways, without losing position, on several occasions. I've never been able to see a bird swimming underwater before, the water was so clear and her orange legs so obvious. A lovely experience.

Back at the cottage, un the midst of chores, I received a text from S and I of our moth group. Thank goodness for that - I'd lost the piece of paper I'd been given with details of their cottage, phone number etc.  I replied and hope it got through.
Tme to watch the final episode of Line of Duty. Truly puzzling, how will it all be explained?

Later.... very well indeed.

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