Spring (April – early June)
Mammals
The Outer Hebrides are undoubtedly one of the best areas in the UK for spotting
Otters. The Otter is common here and although it can be elusive, searching
inlets on the eastern side of the southern isles often proves fruitful, although
chance encounters could happen just about anywhere as there is even evidence of Otters in Stornoway itself. Looking for signs and knowing just where
to look can raise your chances of bumping into one; for more on
Otters in the Western Isles click on the mammal link below.
Both Grey and Common Seals live on the islands and can both be seen hauled out together in certain locations. Although they superficially resemble one another the Greys are generally a larger animal weighing in at 230 Kg for a male and 155 Kg for a female. They also have a large roman nose which has also led to them being known as “horse-head”. The common seal is much gentler looking around the face with neater proportions and is generally less robust reaching 130 Kg. The young animals can be difficult to tell apart and the only foolproof distinction is to examine the shape of the nostrils. In the Common seal the nostrils almost meet on the lower side of the nose, running diagonally outwards to from a heart shape. In the Grey seal the nostrils are more parallel. Once you get the hang of this then all the seals can be distinguished given good views.
Red deer
is the only species of deer you will encounter in the Western Isles. They are common
from South Uist to Lewis and if out early In
the morning you often encounter
them on the roads. Otherwise walking in the hills or scanning from your car over moorland areas will often reveal an animal or two.
There are plenty of smaller mammals about too although not all of them have found their place in the delicate balance of the ecosystem. Hedgehogs were introduced over 20 years ago now and have reeked havoc on the numbers of breeding waders on the machair. They have been linked with the demise of many of the wader species but especially Dunlin and with the Uists said to hold 25% of all British breeding Dunlin this is a serious situation. A project is under way to remove the hedgehogs but it's not an easy task. Other small mammals include shrews, voles (on the Uists) and the Black Rat on the Shiants; one of the few places you can find this animal in the U.K.
(More on Mammals of the Western Isles here)
Insects
It takes Summer quite a while to arrive in the Western Isles and although it is generally mild throughout the year temperatures show little variation, being only an average ten degrees warmer in the summer. This limits the variety of insects to be found but not always their abundance. At certain times of year the machair is humming with bees and other insects, a sight and sound lost from other less healthy environments.
The Great Yellow Bumblebee was once widespread throughout the UK but with the advent of herbicides, more intensive agriculture and loss of flower rich meadows this species has become increasingly rare in the UK although the Outer Hebrides, mostly the Uists is a stronghold for this threatened species. in the Spring the large queens may be encountered searching for what-ever is flowering and if you come across a sheltered location with scented flowers such as Bluebells it's worth spending a bit of time hanging around just in case one of these impressive insects turns up.
In
the moth world the Belted Beauty
(photo: male
and female Belted Beauty, Balranald April 2006)
is a real speciality out here with an extraordinary
world distribution.
This moth can be found throughout the machair areas of Lewis, Harris and
the southern isles of the Outer Hebrides. It has also been recorded
from Sanna Point on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula, Mull, Iona, Colonsay and
Islay in Scotland. Further south it occurs in Lancashire at Ainsdale, North Wales
at Morfa Conwy and in Counties Mayo and Galway in Ireland. In Europe it can be found
on the coast in northern Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands whilst in
central Europe it is a montane species. What is extraordinary
is that the females are flightless and just how this disjunct
population managed to become so scattered is anyone’s guess. It can be found
from mid-April until early May when the males may be spotted flying low
to the machair during the day, in search of females.
( More on insects of the Western Isles here)
Flora
Growth
is often rather slow in the spring as the wind tends to suppress many plants
apart from hardy species such the Yellow Flag Iris. Even so once May arrives there is some excitement to be found in the flora as the Outer Hebrides hold one or two real specialities for the
botanically minded. Orchids brighten many a coastal plain at this time of year
as the vibrant red spikes of the Early Marsh Orchid sub-sp. coccinea are
one of the first to appear from May into early June. This orchid is usually
found in dune slacks in the west of the U.K. or in the Uists on the machair
close to the coast. It belongs to the family
Dactylohriza which contains a
number of other variable species that often hybridise with one another
leading to very odd looking specimens that don't fit the parameters for any
species.
(Early Marsh Orchid subsp. coccinea)
It
was through such a hybridisation between
Early
Marsh Orchids subsp. coccinea and Common Spotted Orchid sub-sp.
hebridensis that the endemic Hebridean Marsh
Orchid Dactylorhiza ebudensis. was formed. This rare orchid is
restricted mainly to one dune slack in North Uist and a few small
satellite populations. It has for years been recognised as something different although
didn't get full species status until the last few years following on
from genetic analysis. It is a very distinctive orchid with rich, deep
purple flowers and usually heavily, transversely spotted leaves. Not all
specimens are so heavily marked as this one although some actually show
completely black leaves. The flowers can be found around the first half
of June.
(Hebridean Marsh Orchid)