When we're asked which is the month for the best chance of good weather in Scotland we always say, May - and then warn that, even in May, the weather can be dreadful. Which is how we saw this May come in but, thankfully, that has changed: we've had a beautiful day today, sunny, light winds, and a maximum outside temperature of 14C which, for this part of the world in May, really isn't too bad.
Sadly, the insects haven't come out to enjoy it, and the few that did spent much of their time trying to get warm. We saw few butterflies today, two peacocks, a white, an unidentified one, an orange tip and half-a-dozen speckled woods; and as few....
....other insects. This bumblebee spent time laboriously working at a pansy flower and then....
....fell onto the ground. If there were few bees, there were as few other insects.
At least the wildflowers seem to be doing well despite the lack of rain. This is heath milkwort which seems to be doing particularly well along the edges of the forest paths, and this is....
....the first yellow pimpernel of the year.
Another serious absentee recently has been the fungi. Perhaps they don't like the long spell of dry weather, so it was good to see one 'in flower' on our walk this morning.
Happily, the birds are still in full-throated song. This is a willow warbler - though I wanted to shout a warning to him that a cuckoo has been calling in the nearby forestry so he needs to guard his nest.
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