Aconites and starlings

Aconites on the Cairnhill, certainly a originally garden throw out but now well established in the wild amongst clumps of snowdrops.



A cacophony of loud chattering starlings in the rookery trees at Peathill

A sunny Spring Saturday morning and Grey Granite decided to make the most of the mild weather walking from the Fluke Peel, round by Mains of Pitullie, Peathill and then over the Dry Briggs and down the Cassa Brae. The route took in four of the nine Rosehearty Burgh Boundary stones most of it to the accompaniment of skylarks . At Peathill the rooks were noisily building their nests and we saw several angry corvid squabbles. The rooks were sharing the trees with a vast flock of very noisy starlings. The Dry Briggs footpath was far from dry: there was flooding which sent us briefly over the dyke and into the park at the lowest point of the path. As we walked down towards Rosehearty I regretted the gradual encroachment of new houses on the lower part of the path. Crossing the Cairnhill we were rewarded by a large patch of snowdrops and a few aconites, obviously garden throw outs but now well established. The single celandine in flower by the Byre Hame brings the wild flower species count for the year so far to 18.