Footsteps in sand - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Footprints

I love the mixture of sand on the beaches of Westray. Some are shell sand from the crushed shells of the molluscs …

Cormorants - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Cloaca

Birds, like most vertebrates, apart from many mammals, have a cloaca. Cloaca is Latin for sewer and is the combined intestinal, urinary …

Fulmar - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Flying Fulmars

I think of fulmars as being mid-engined birds with relatively short wings. They are deceptive, however, as their wings can appear quite …

Osprey - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Soggy Osprey

Of all the things I love about autumn, trips to see Ospreys migrating back to Africa are one of my top highlights. …

Waves - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Wild majesty

There’s a spot on the coast of Westray that I return to again and again. A rock shelf reaches out into the …

Wheatear - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

A curious Wheatear

I sometimes wonder why Wheatears are so difficult to get close to. Then I remember that we have killed and eaten every …

Grey Phalarope - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Good eyesight is a fabulous thing

The Grey Phalarope, Phalaropus fulicarius, is a bird I’ve only ever seen in full breeding plumage. Where it breeds, it’s known as …

Giant Polypore - Meripilus giganteus - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

The Giant Polypore

The Giant Polypore, Meripilus giganteus, is giant and has many pores on its underside. It’s also called the Black-Staining Polypore because, well, …

Shag - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Shag on the cliffs

The weather is incredible on Westray today. There are blue skies, blustery winds and waves which roll and roll. I’m enjoying sitting …

Arctic Tern - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Arctic Terns in the bay

There’s a small group of Arctic Terns in the bay. They are such beautiful birds. I love the long tail streamers. There …

Goose Barnacles - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Goose Barnacles

Apparently Goose Barnacles have a sweet taste like Razor Clams. They’re filter feeders which grow on rocks or on flotsam and have …

Wheatear - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Wheatears full of character

Wheatear know how to strike a pose. Northern Wheatear, Oenanthe oenanthe, are small yet very powerful birds. They have been stunningly successful …

Ruined car - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Overdue MOT

This car’s MOT looks overdue. I’m not sure the lights on this one are legal. It’s expensive to get rid of a …

Starling - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Stare and Starling

I love how busy and gregarious Starlings are. Their original name was Stare but over time the diminutive form, Starling, came to …

Lilies in the garden - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Garden flowers

The stone walls in the garden at Einar are a wonderful way of sheltering the garden plants here. They are full of …

Tadpole Fish - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

The Tadpole Fish

There’s a fish which looks like a giant tadpole washed up on Sand o’ Gill on Westray. As I attempt to get …

Boomtown Fair - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Boomtown Fair portrait #6

This is the expression of a man watching the Copper Feel Cabaret, full of sequinned bras and feather boas.

Fulmar feeding chick - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Feeding Fulmar

It’s rare that I get close photographs of Fulmars eating. They’re normally well offshore when I see them feasting on something. This …

Arctic Skua - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Arctic Skua

There’s a familiar silhouette on the slopes below Skea Hill. It’s an Arctic Skua. There are several ‘morphs’ of Arctic Skuas. There …

Beadlet Anemone - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Beadlet Anemone giving birth

It’s 49 years since I was on holiday in Tenby in Wales and sketched this Beadlet Anemone, Actinia equina. I’m scouring rockpools …

Sanderling - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Sanderling and seaweed

There are Sanderling heading in to feast on the invertebrates left by the retreating tide on Taftend. There is a flock of …

Osprey - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Ospreys on the Dart

The River Dart is one of the most beautiful rivers in England. Rising high on Dartmoor, it runs for nearly fifty miles …

Foam and Footprints - The Hall of Einar - photograph © David Bailey (not the)

Foam and footprints

Our lives make such insignificant marks which are soon washed away. They are beautiful while they last.