The Cycle of Life

On this sunny morning of strong winds and sudden showers, along the beach below Dunrobin Castle....

....pairs of oystercatchers lurk, pretending that they're not too worried about being disturbed when we know that, like....

....the ringed plovers sitting on the rocks just below the beach, the apparent nonchalance hides an intense concern for a nest of eggs lying amid the shingle and dry weed above the high-tide mark.

The mallard on the Golspie Burn are a little ahead of them as one pair already has three little ducklings. Their favourite haunt is near the mouth of the burn where locals come down with their children to feed them left-over bread.

The ringed plovers, oystercatchers and mallard are at home along this section of coast: the guillemot aren't - they nest on steep cliffs - so there must be something wrong with this one, sitting impassively amidst the wrack.  Such a shame, as it looks in very good condition.

For some - and this includes at least three juvenile gulls - the cycle of life has stopped and their remains lie tangled amongst the seaweed or are slowly being buried by the wind-blown sand. They all looked about the same age, which raises the question of what killed them.