May 13th, 2010 · by Sanday Ranger · Community
Contact Rod on: (01857) 600341 or ranger@sanday.co.uk
MOST OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS MAY BE ENLARGED BY CLICKING OVER THE IMAGE
The weather during the first half of May has not been particularly encouraging for gardeners or walkers; and only a few hardy visitors have made the journey to Sanday. One couple, who’d booked to Orkney months ago, had their plans disrupted by the Iceland-volcanic-ash-plane-cancellations, and so did not make the day-trip to Sanday for the advertised ‘West side wander’ on the 10th. The north-west winds, that have made most days pretty chilly, were at full strength that day. At the appointed meeting-place, the assembled throng – one visitor along with the Ranger – looked at each other wondering which might suggest calling it off. Neither did; both of us made the best of it. Down the track past the Mires we had a couple of Curlews and a Lapwing for company, could just make out the sound of the singing Skylark, and found the ditch full of the rich golden yellow Marsh Marigolds.
Down onto the boulder-beach, where, nearly two years ago, on 23rd July 2008, a Ranger outing to the beach encountered a gruesome sight. A long-dead Risso’s Dolphin had been stranded by the tide and was providing a meal for Great Black-backed Gulls.
Risso's Dolphin, Mill Geo (W.side) 23.7.08
Now, all that is left are the bleached bones – gathered in a fishbox at the top of the beach.
Crashing waves and the onshore gale made sea-watching tricky; instead we cowered in the lee of the sandstone outcrops and admired those birds that flew along the water’s edge or over the top of us. Among them were Bonxie (Great Skua), Pied wagtail, Wren, Maallie (Fulmar), and Gannet.
A little farther south, at Girni Geo, we stopped to look at a Raven’s nest – the only bird on an otherwise ledge-less cliff face; the young will probably be flying within a week.
Telescope-view of the cliff-nesting Raven
There were at least two well-feathered chicks in the nest…
We paused on the return walk to look at the Reindeer moss (a Cladonia lichen) and Violets…
Violets at Mill Geo 10th May 2010
…. and were then quite pleased to turn back towards the cars – and have the last ten minutes or so with the gale behind us.
Possibly the most unusual find this month was of a Morel – an (edible) fungus “greatly valued in central Europe, where, in their dried form, they are an important food.” (Penguin Nature Guides – Fungi of Northern Europe, by Nilsson & Persson). Subject to official confirmation, I think it is a specimen of Morchella esculenta. It was found among the woodland nurtured at Lettan in the north end of Sanday (W & S McArthur).
Morchella esculenta?
Ranger events planned for the rest of the month:
Tuesday 18th – Whitemill Wander
Friday 21st – Backaskaill Beachcomb
Sunday 23rd – Guided trip to and up the Lighthouse
Monday 24th – Exploring & Shell-hunting at Doun Helzie
Tuesday 25th – Colliness – Dunters (Eiders) and Pickies (Arctic Terns)
Friday 28th – West Side Cliff walk
Sunday 30th – Minibus excursion to Eday (BOOKING ESSENTIAL)
Monday 31st – Minibus History tour (BOOKING ESSENTIAL)
Contact Rod on: (01857) 600341 or ranger@sanday.co.uk
A compilation of Ranger reports can be found here:
Ranger News January to March
March 31st, 2010 · by Sanday Ranger · Community
If you’re visiting, or planning to visit, Sanday this year, you might like to contact the Sanday Ranger who would be delighted to hear from you.
Roderick Thorne has lived on the island for over 25 years, and is interested in all aspects of natural history, archaeology, and the island’s heritage in all its aspects. He’s employed by the island’s Development Trust, and has researched and written a series of information leaflets about the island – specialising in Birds, Flowers, Mammals and Archaeology; a fifth in that series, about Shells, is due to be printed this year. These, along with two more leaflets (‘Sanday at War’ and ‘I-Spy Sanday’) are freely available on the island and on the mainland.
During the summer season, the Ranger has a series of walks, activities, and excursions designed to appeal to as many folk as possible. He’s always keen to have islanders join in – their local knowledge is greater than his; keen, too, to meet visitors with or without expertise in any aspect of natural history.
Contact him:
01857-600-341
ranger@sanday.co.uk
Roderick Thorne, Sanday Ranger, Nearhouse, SANDAY, Orkney, Scotland KW17 2BW
Below is an outline of events for April…
Sunday 18th April – Bag the Bruck
Bagging the Bruck at Doun Helzie
Every year ECO (Environmental Concern Orkney) organises a county-wide clean-up of beaches and verges. Volunteers in all the parishes and islands choose a target area, and fill up as many green bags as possible with old netting, rope, plastic bottles and other jetsam and flotsam. The Orkney Islands Council and local Community Council help by providing bags and gloves and – for local voluntary groups on Sanday – there’s a bounty for each bag filled, a little money to help club funds.
The Ranger’s target beach is Doun Helzie, a delightful sandy cove hidden away in the south-west of the island. Several of the Ranger walks later in the summer are to Doun Helzie, so this is a good chance to tidy the beach at the start of the season.
Sanday Saddle Club Bruck-Bagging
One of the photographs above shows a previous Doun Helzie clean-up; the other shows a small group of Saddle Cub members and a couple of their steeds.
Sunday 25th April – ‘Some Sanday Folk Tales’
A 2-3 hour minibus excursion, stopping at a few locations central to stories of monsters and mayhem. Hear about the Catwitch of Colliness, the Hogboon of Hellihow, and visit the grave of the island’s famous folklorist Walter Traill Dennison.
Hogboon of Hellihow
Bring a snack and a drink, and meet at the School’s upper car park at 2 p.m. There’ll be a small charge to cover the cost of the use of the minibus.
Tuesday 27th April – Doun Helzie
Doun Helzie from the air
This beach is hidden from the roads, but is a just a short walk from the road to Stove at the south end of Sanday. The geology of the area is quite different from the rest of the island, and there are several intriguing arches and caves to explore.
"Underneath the Arches..."
Like many of our shallow sandy beaches, there are plenty of shells to discover on the strandline, and it’s possible you may find the beautiful Faroese Sunset Shell.
Meet at the Stove sub-station at 2 p.m. Depending on the weather, the outing might take two hours or so.
This is a reminder that the Christmas Fair takes place on Sunday 6th December at the school, starting at 2pm.
There will be plenty of stalls selling local and seasonal items, refreshments will be available (provided by the Cubs and Scouts), the Fiddle Club will be playing carols and Santa will be in attendance.
The Sanday Fiddle Club were performing in Glasgow last week. They played Max’s composition “A Birthday Card for Prince Charles.” Classic FM recorded their performance and it was aired on the Anne-Marie Minhall show yesterday afternoon. If you missed it, you can use the Listen Again feature on the Classic FM website. The show went out between 3pm and 5pm on the 14th Nov and will be available for 7 days from that time.
(We should have a full report of the trip on the site soon.)
