Month: July 2017

Go Wild, Calgary, Fishing and the Lighthouse Path.

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Since we changed the title of our annual summer event, ‘Fun in the Sun’ to ‘Go Wild’ the weather had greatly improved and this year we were spoiled with wall to wall sunshine, I think probably ‘Fun in the sun’ was a jinx on the weather. We held one session in Aros Park and another at Calgary Art in Nature, unfortunately I forgot to take my camera to Aros Park but here are some images from Calgary. What a lovely group they were.

Making wildlife homes

Earlier on in the week we had been at Calgary monitoring the flowers on the machair. Though the machair has only been enclosed for nearly two months the flowers found growing are quite amazing. The sheep will be back in in September sometime and will happily munch the grass all winter until May time next year. We would like to thank all those that supported our fundraising bid and also the graziers William and Anne MacPhail and Ian Thompson, fencer for making this all possible.

20170726104317_0000120170726104347_0000120170726104422_0000120170726104600_00001Calgary Machair (Thank you Carolyne Charrington for the view of the bay shot)

We had a very successful and constructive work party at Calgary on Sunday, with a new gate installed, thistles on the machair chopped and bagged, the campsite edges strimmed and nettles and thistles also removed and the boulders at the entrance paint white so that they are more obvious. This was followed by very yummy home baking and a much deserved cup of tea.

 The work party (Thank you Andy Mortley for photos)

On Saturday last we held our annual fishing competition at Loch Frisa. The worthy winner was Conner, aged 5, Jane & John McDowall’s grandson and Jenny and Ged’s son. He fished all day from 10 till 3pm, only letting up for a bacon butty, caught the most fish including about 100 minnows and caught the largest fish. He was presented with a cup given to the Ranger Service by Angus Robertson (Snr) which was originally a Loch Frisa cup back in the 90’s. It was presented to Connor in remembrance of his great grandfather Lachie McDowall who helped out many a youngster at our annual fishing competition over many a year. It seems just right that his great grandson should win it. Lachie will have been looking down proudly.

fishing comp

Connor , Aged 5.

MICT have a grant to repair and reinstate the footpath from Tobermory to Rubha nan Gall Lighthouse. I had a site visit to the path the other day to see how Contractors Gerry Kangley and Andrew Padley were getting on. Although the road closure signs erected by the council in 2014 were largely ignored, the current works mean the path really is CLOSED and will be until the works are completed!

I was very impressed with their progress and the quality of the job so far.

An alternative route to the lighthouse is available via Tobermory Golf Course and information on this route and overall progress of the work is available on the Tobermory Lighthouse Path Facebook Page.

MICT acknowledges the support of Scottish Natural Heritage who have provided the grant for the work. The project also benefitted from a donation of around 40T of stone by Glensanda Quarry which was lifted into place by the Northern Lighthouse Board’s helicopter – thank you! We’re also really grateful to the Pier Café, Tobermory, who have donated a bench which will be installed at one of the viewpoints.

Not a lot of room!!
Before
After

The Lighthouse Path, not a lot of room, before and after.

Moths, flowers and walks

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Lots of things happening down the Ross this month, including our children’s events that are part of the Gala fortnight. Teddy Bear’s Picnic for 3-6 year olds at Ardalanish and Survivor Camp at our community forest for 9-15 year olds. To find our more and how to book visit our events page and get in touch, hope to see you soon!
In June we did the annual moth count on Burg which is important in managing their population and monitoring the habitat they depend on. With help from NTS colleagues we counted Transparent, Six Spot and most importantly the rare Slender Scotch Burnet. They only fly in June and require a warm, sunny and calm day to count them flying or sunbathing on the steep slopes. It was a lovely day to walk over this gorgeous landscape and we counted a good number of each species.

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We ran a wildflower walk on Iona, looking at the species found there. It was a lovely gentle walk identifying the very varied species of flowers, plants and grasses found in the fields and sides of paths. In total, we counted 86 different species including Crested dog’s tail, Red Bartsia and this stunning Northern Marsh Orchid. Thank you to Peter for helping to identify the more difficult ones and everyone who attended on the day.

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We attended Iona Abbey to run a session with their guests where we looked at what makes Iona special and our underlying motivations for environmental care. The guests enjoyed exploring the Abbey’s grounds looking at the different species found under their feet, sticking them to these strips. It was lovely seeing each person’s interpretation and creative colour boards.

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Into July, and this week we have had visiting botanists to the area, who have been ticking off islands they hadn’t been to around Mull and the Treshnish islands. On Tuesday, myself and Emily had the pleasure of being able to join them and learn from the experts about the different flowers and plants that we found. A useful days training for both of us. We went out on Mark’s ‘Birthe Marie’ to the island of Inch Kenneth in Loch Na Keal. It is a fascinating island composed of limestone and has a rich variety of wildflowers. It was fascinating for both myself and Emily to see just how many different species grew there and surprised myself of how many plants I have already learnt from my time here on Mull.

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We had a stunning day of weather on Wednesday morning for our walk at Carsaig Bay. It was calm, sunny and very warm and enjoyed a 3 hour walk along the coast line. We saw lots of wildlife including a Garden Tiger moth, baby frogs and a White-Tailed Sea Eagle! There was also a chance to cool down behind this amazing waterfall and at low tide we went searching for fossils, finding part of this ammonite.

Kate

National Meadow Day

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National Meadow Day

The first day of July saw events around the country in support of our British flower meadows. We’ve lost 97% of our hay meadow habitat across the UK and so National Meadow Day highlights their importance. Meadows are vitally important for many species, including the flowers and grasses, plus those species which rely upon them. So, with the help and enthusiasm of Carolyne and Somerset of Treshnish, a wildlife friendly farm, we hosted a National Meadow Day event on Mull – where we have our own local Coronation Meadow. For the 60th anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation, a meadow was created in every county, aiming to halt the rapid decline, and too stimulate a new mood toward protecting our meadows.

Magical Moths

On the eve of Meadow Day, we set up three moth traps around the farm, hoping to catch an array of moths to showcase the local biodiversity. Typically, only one of the traps worked throughout the night, but thankfully the few moths we caught were eye-catching and colourful. So, for the first section of the day we crowded into the barn, sheltering from the rain to admire the moths. We also chatted about how to get involved with moth trapping, where to send records and investigated some of the traps available. Three of the stunning moths we enjoyed were the White Ermine, Magpie Moth and a Poplar Hawk Moth.

 

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Enthralling flowers

Following this, we braved the dreich weather and walked together to the Coronation Meadow itself. Even before we arrived we’d spotted countless wildflower species – the track edges teeming with life. We stopped to admire a Greater Butterfly Orchid, a species thought to be pollinated by moths nocturnally. Also along the tracks we recorded Meadowsweet, Heath Bedstraw, Tormentil, Lady’s Bedstraw, Slender St John’s-wort and Selfheal among many others. Upon reaching the meadow itself, the ground underfoot became a luscious carpet of flowers. Yellow Rattle, Red Bartsia, Red Clover and Eyebright were bountiful, the colours rich. Dotted amongst the dominant species, were others including Northern Marsh Orchid, Tufted Vetch and Meadow Vetchling. Along the edges of ditches we also saw Marsh Lousewort and on the meadows edge two rare species were inspected; Wood Bitter Vetch and Moonwort.

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Moonwort – said to “open locks and unshoe such horses as tread upon it”.

 

Plastic-free Picnic

Just as the weather began to clear, we trooped back into the barn to be welcomed by Jeanette, from Ballygown Restaurant. She’d prepared delicious picnic lunches, all in fully compostable trays, alongside compostable cutlery – no plastic waste (my kind of picnic!). Not only did Jeanette provide lunch, we were also treated to homemade desert and Elderflower cordial – yummy!

Safe to say, that despite the ever-unreliable weather we all had a super day at Treshnish and I’m sure we all left with no doubt to the great biodiversity a well-managed flower meadow can support. We’d love to say an enormous thanks to both Carolyne and Somerset Charrington for holding the event and for farming their land so wonderfully. Plus thanks to Meryl, the RSPB Mull Eagle Watch Ranger for joining us, as well as a very scrumptious thanks to Jeanette for her mouth-watering food and consideration to the planet. I’m sure the event will return in future years!

 

Calaich Point Headland Walk

The Ranger Service teamed up with the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust for a Headland Walk on the 28th June. We explored Caliach Point, jutting out on the North West of Mull, giving views out toward Coll and Tiree as well as the Small Isles; Rum, Eigg, Muck and Canna.

We unknowingly timed the event perfectly, and had super weather, with flat calm conditions – perfect for spotting marine life. We started off with a Harbour Seal and local breeding Lapwings calling overhead. On route we checked the fertilised mounds along the coast, which are frequented by gulls, corvids, eagles and otters alike so they’re ideal to check for pellets and spraints.

Just as the local pair of Ravens appeared overhead with their fledglings Pippa from HWDT and one the guests spotted a Minke Whale surface close by! We managed to gain a little height on the point and managed to get a few more surfaces even though the animal seemed to be travelling and moving through the area quickly. Other sightings included Fulmar, Gannet, Shag, Great Black-Backed Gull and Black Guillemot.

We had a lovely afternoon in a peaceful part of the island.

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Watch out for more of our Ranger Service events which are continuing throughout the summer, along with our Wildlife Hide drop in sessions.

Get in touch to book, or leave us some of your sightings over on our Facebook page.

Thanks for reading,

Rachel (Mull Eagle Watch Ranger)