A lovely afternoon - where to go? We often go to Shancastle Loch just to sit and watch the wildlife while enjoying a cup of tea. Not having been since last year we thought it was time to go and see what birds were about. We have seen ducklings and goslings here before at this time of year.
Shancastle Loch is a man-made loch on the A702 near Moniaive.
It is a lovely peaceful spot to sit and watch the water. There is always something to see.
Within just a few minutes today we saw ducklings and goslings drifting along the water with their parent(s). We counted 24 mallard ducklings! Then, under the trees we spotted a lovely little roe deer. He came out and wandered around for quite a few minutes before going back into the trees.
Both Greylags and Canada Geese
had goslings - we counted 24 of
them too! Just hope they survive.
As it has been dry recently we did walk a circuit
of the loch while we were there.
There were plenty of dandelions that had gone to seed
- remember blowing them when you were little?
The bees love dandelions at this time of year
so we try not to chop them down in our garden too quickly.
Everyone regards daisies as a weed but they are quite a pretty little flower really.
I think this is Bugle, but what a lovely little blue flower when you look close.
While we were wandering around the loch
there were plenty of Martins and
Swallows swooping over the water. They are such acrobats!
The deer was still in the trees so we kept very quiet as we walked on.
Round the back of the loch, the sun came out and within a few minutes we were watching butterflies zooming backwards and forwards. We identified male and female Orange Tips (without being able to get a photo!) but also some Green-veined whites.
The greylags were busy on the grass as we walked back to the car and we reckon there must have been about 50 geese (Canada and Greylag) in total.
Also lovely to see on the loch were the Little Grebes, disappearing under the water to pop up again in a different location. One was still sitting on a nest but we saw at least 5 while we were there. Lapwing, heron, moorhen, oystercatcher, buzzard, pied wagtail and tufted ducks were also on or around the water. The noisiest by far were the black-headed gulls sitting on the rocky island in the loch. Woodpigeons, rooks and carrion crows were all over the fields around the loch.
We decided there was still time to go and look at Maxwellton Chapel - somewhere we had passed but never investigated.
Although we couldn't go inside, we did wander all around the chapel. What a super little place!
At this time of year the grounds are full of bluebells - what a wonderful setting for a wedding at this time of year!
The trees looked wonderful, with their bright new foliage.
A very picturesque looking shed in the middle of the flowers!
There is a lovely loch that you can wander around too. There were 2 Canada Geese sitting on the edge of the water while we were there.
A lovely wooden bridge takes you across the water to complete the circle of the loch.
Only a short walk all around the loch but on a peaceful, sunny afternoon it was wonderful.
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