Wild calendar


Kenny Taylor gives some seasonal tips for savouring Scottish wildlife and landscapes


Take a long summer day. Add a pinch of wildlife. It could be the call of a lone falcon over a moor where nothing else moves. It might be 10,000 daisies, studded like stars on the turf of a field. Stir in some water, whether that’s the river, sea, cascade or a sunny shower. Now blend in a Scottish backdrop to your taste. Drink deep of this glorious season.


1


Purple milk vetch was so-named from a belief that it could boost milk production in cattle that ate it.


2


The six-spot burnet is a day-flying moth that often lives near the coast. Its colours warn predators that it’s poisonous.


1 The big B at St C


Sea, sand, flowers, brightly coloured butterflies and other insects make a potent summer combination. At St Cyrus National Nature Reserve, near Montrose, you can see all these things by the beach-, cliff- and grassland-load. Part of its wildlife power comes from the sheer number of


plants here (about 350 higher plant species, and counting). Some of these have names to quicken the pulse of those with a liking for fine flowers. Meadow saxifrage, purple milk vetch and bloody cranesbill are part of this exciting bunch. Part comes from the variety of insects here, including all


five Scottish-dwelling species of grasshopper and cricket, more than a dozen different butterflies and more than 200 species of moth. Perhaps the most striking of these moths is the day-flying six-spot burnet, resplendent in shiny black and scarlet. So, in this International Year of Biodiversity, St Cyrus is a


great Scottish example of variety of life in a much-cherished place. Give it a visit to discover what the ‘B’ word really means.


Web tips: www.nnr-scotland.org and click ‘Find an NNR’ www.snh.gov.uk/pdfs/education/burnetmoth.pdf


4


The Nature of Scotland


Summer


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