Wildlife At Duart Castle

June 2024

We had a great start to our extended holiday, seeing the Chequered Skipper butterfly on our first evening in Scotland, having a fabulous stay in Fort William, and then seeing the Black Guillemots In Oban on our way to the Isle of Mull. I felt sure our luck would continue and we'd have a fabulous two weeks on the island. During the first week, we stayed in a wonderful self-catering cottage in Dervaig, in the northwest. Although most of our time that week was spent in this part of the island, on our first day we drove back east to Duart Castle, which we'd seen the day before from the ferry.

The castle was quite imposing, sitting on top of the cliff walls overlooking the water, where the Sound of Mull meets Loch Linnhe and Firth of Lorn. As you can see it was a glorious sunny day. But, what you can't see is just how blooming windy it was! Not the most ideal conditions for looking for butterflies and moths, but as you may have come to realise, the weather seldom puts us off! Most people were indoors doing a tour of the castle or enjoying the delights of the cafe, but we were too busy outdoors to venture inside, being entertained by nature. We rather liked having the place more or less to ourselves too.

The purpose of our visit was two-fold. We were both keen to see some Marsh Fritillaries - a species I'd only seen for the first time the previous year in Wiltshire - and Bob was also hoping to find the very rare Slender Scotch Burnet Moth. It's a subspecies only found on Mull. Unfortunately, despite looking for quite a while, we didn't find any of these Burnet Moths, but the Marsh Fritillary did welcome us pretty much as soon as we arrived. We'd only walked down a slight slope from the car park and along the footpath about 10m, when we spotted one in front of us, settled on the ground on the path. It was ridiciulously easy compared to our search in Wiltshire.

The pattern on the wings of this male Marsh Fritillary is so striking, despite the fact it is really faded and worn. There was damage to the scales on the wings and also the pale fringe was virtually non exisitent. But these are beautiful butterflies! I didn't mind at all and was happy photographing them wherever I found them, if I could get an interesting shot or good angle. Whilst we meandered around the coast by the castle, I noticed there was a lot of the pretty pink Sea Thrift adorning the rocks and craggy outcrops. I'd been looking for an opportunity to photograph some, so when I saw a Marsh Fritillary nectaring on a patch, I couldn't resist.

As we slowly meandered around the narrow footpaths, we were lucky enough to see over 30 Marsh Fritillaries settling on plants, flowers or on the ground, sometimes disturbing them into flight because we hadn't even spotted them. At one point, there were three flying together near us, but moving further away. Bob said they were almost certainly two males chasing the female in the hopes of mating with her. As I heard him say the words, I kept my eyes on them flying away. One flew off in a different direction, obviously having given up. But the other male was still in pursuit. I didn't take my eyes off them, when they suddenly both dropped down into the grass. I made a mental note of where they were and noticed the taller plants nearby. Bob continued to look for the Burnet Moth he was hoping to see, but I wanted to go and find out whether the female had been receptive to the male's pursuit and made my way over to where I'd spotted them go down.

At first, I found one Marsh Fritillary sitting on a blade of grass alone. I had no idea if this was one of the two I'd just seen. I was just about to squat down low to take a few photos regardless, when I realised there was another one within a foot of where I was standing. It hadn't budged an inch. Thankfully, I hadn't disturbed it despite being so close. I carefully stepped back again. Perhaps these were the two I'd seen flying, though they were about a metre apart. At that point it didn't even occur to me to see if they were a male and female. But, after taking a few photos, I got my answer. I don't recall why I glanced to my left. Perhaps I'd seen some movement. But, once again, probably a foot away from me, I found the pair I had seen flying and they were now mating! Brilliant! I was so chuffed I'd found them!

It was fabulous being able to have such a good view of their underwings and to be able to compare the difference between the male (left) and female (right). The female was noticeably larger, lighter coloured and fresher looking. You can actually see the dark veins that extend into the pale fringe on her. The pale fringe on the male is all but gone. That's one of the things I remember whenever seeing mating butterflies. The male is invariably the tattier looking one. They generally emerge earlier than the females, waiting for their chance to mate.

I was thrilled when they both momentarily opened their wings wide. Not only were we able to see the difference in the markings and colouration of the upper wings, but also appreciate the difference in abdomen size. The female has a much wider rounder abdomen. Even Bob was thrilled to see the mating pair when I called him over. I think it helped take away some of the disappointment in not finding the Burnet Moth species he was hoping to see.

We actually visited Duart Castle three times in the end during our stay on Mull. The second time was at the end of the first week and the last time right at the end of our stay. Bob was ever hopeful of finding the Slender Scotch Burnet Moth, but unfortunately it wasn't to be on any of our three visits. The wet spring had probably delayed their emergence this year and we were probably a few weeks too early.

On our subsequent visits, we saw fewer Marsh Fritillaries and those we did were much more worn. I was very pleased we found this beauty perched on a Heath Spotted Orchid (above). At first, it was hiding behind the flower, but eventually, it moved into a better position for me to photograph it. I tried several times on our first visit to capture a video of a Marsh Fritillary nectaring on a flower, but the wind made it impossible for the camera to focus on the butterfly for more than a few seconds. I felt sorry for the butterfly being blown about on the flowerhead, clinging on, as the flower swayed and dipped repeatedly with each gust of wind. I gave up on the video in the end. To be honest, it was still quite windy on our other two visits too.

There were lots of other wildlife treats for us that first day. So much so, we ended up staying a lot longer than we'd planned. But sometimes those spontaneous kinds of days can be the best. You go with one thing in mind, but you find something else grabs your attention, which you enjoy equally as much, if not more.

I spotted some Large Red Damselflies mating, whilst basking on a rock near a rock pool, right by the coast. If you look closely, you can see the dark bands along the abdomen of the female (absent in the male), which are partly obscured by her wings.

I also spotted this colourful creature, without any clue what it was. I've looked it up and it's a Cuckoo Wasp, also known as a Ruby-tailed Wasp - for obvious reasons (Chrysis ignita). It's actually a parasitoid, but thankfully for humans it doesn't sting.

There were quite a few Meadow Pipits flying around. One was seen on top of a large boulder and I was able to sneak up fairly close, hiding behind another large boulder nearby. Periodically, it would fly up high and 'parachute' down. It was quite bizarre. I'd not seen anything like it before. I was quite intrigued as I watched it slowly float down. Bob explained it's a common display flight in spring. Our other Pipit species also do this 'parachuting'.

I love that I learn something new every day! In fact, usually more than one thing!

Later, I saw a Meadow Pipit flying down to a path not far away from me, but out of sight, obscured by the grass. Slowly, I quietly inched along the path until I could see it. Crouching down, I was able to take a few photos without scaring it off. I love this action shot as it's lifting up its foot. It's a beautiful little bird. Though it looks like a Song Thrush, it's much smaller. The markings on its head, back and wings were much more striking than a Song Thrush. Having said that, I do love a Song Thrush too. As luck would have it, I saw one that day too. It was a little bolder, standing tall in amongst the grasses and wildflowers. It's another beauty with its delightful and distinctive song. We didn't get to enjoy it on this windy day, but it's one of my favourite sounds of springtime.

The unexpected star of the show that first day at Duart Castle was the Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk-moth. The very same species I'd spotted in Glen Loy in Fort William earlier in the week. That first time of seeing one, the moth had only just emerged. Its wings had not fully developed and we didn't see it fly. But, on this occasion, we were treated to loads of flying action. What a thrill it was trying to capture the action. Bob and I were hooked and mesmerised for over an hour. It moved about quickly from one flower to the next, just like the similar Hummingbird Hawk-moth, another favourite I love to see back home in Sussex. Whilst the latter hovers whilst nectaring, the Bee Hawk-moth at least rested its legs temporarily on the Bird's Foot Trefoil as it uncurled its proboscis and sucked out the nectar. It amazed me how quickly it would do it though and move from one flowerhead to the next. Then suddenly it would fly a couple of meters away - aided by the wind of course. It took a lot of patience and tenacity to keep up with it. We think there were at least two individuals, but we couldn't be certain if there were more.

You can clearly see from these photos why it's called the Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk-moth. I also love the shot with the curled up proboscis, in flight. There were dozens of photos that were deleted to find just these half a dozen keepers! It's truly a stunning species and quite magical to watch.

I may have given up on videoing the Marsh Fritillary nectaring on the flowers, but I did have a little success with capturing the Bee Hawk-moth nectaring.

The afternoon flew by, with both of us engrossed in photographing and videoing the Hawk-moth. But that wasn't where the fun ended for me. Whilst Bob remained down by the coast, my attention shifted to the aerial displays of the Swallows over the lawned green between the car park and the castle. There were quite a few of them flying about, trying to capture insects on the wings, most likely to feed their young. It was almost continual. The challenge though, is how they seldom fly straight and in one direction. They wheel, dive, turn and swoop quickly and unexpectedly. With my camera set to a fast shutter speed, I tried tracking one as best I could, hoping it would maintain its direction long enough for me to gain focus and fire off a few consecutive frames. A burst like this means there are lots of photos captured in a short space of time. Going through them afterwards can be laborious, but when you have a few good ones, it makes it worth all the effort. These won't win any prizes, but I'm pleased with them.

When we returned the second time the weather was slightly different and not quite as sunny, but I had another stab at it, whilst Bob was looking for the Slender Scotch Burnet Moths again.

It's lovely to be able to appreciate the lovely white spots in the tail in the above photo, plus how the extended outer tail feathers fork distinctively. It's such a stunning species to watch. I love Swallows!

On our final visit, we wandered around the coastal area again below the castle. Bob was still checking out all the Bird's Foot Trefoil for signs of the Slender Scotch Burnet Moth, whilst I was following a different path not too far away. As I approached some brambles and taller scrub, I saw a bird flitting around, but remaining hidden. I stopped, hoping to see it, but it remained out of sight. Eventually, I gave up and continued walking past. I had only moved on about four metres, when I turned towards Bob. Suddenly, from the corner of my eye, I spotted this tiny little bird fly right towards me, low. It took me by surprise! Even more so, when it landed on my lower leg! I peered down at what was evidently a juvenile, seeing its claws clasping my beige trouser leg. What an amazing, delightful, surprising moment! Within seconds, it flew away back to safety amongst the brambles. I had to wait a little longer before I was able to identify the bird. An adult appeared, perching on the brambles. It was a Common Whitethroat. 

Gradually, we worked our way around towards the west side of the peninsula, towards Duart Bay. We were looking for a good spot to have our lunch, where we might be shielded a bit from the wind. That was when I spotted this caterpillar. I didn't need to use Obsidentify on this one, as Bob recognised it as being an Emperor Moth caterpillar. When it grows up, it will turn into this stunning moth. I was lucky enough to photograph the mature adult male in April of this year with Bob, when we were on the South Downs. Notice just how large and feathered the antennae are. This is so important for the males so they can smell the pheromones that the female secretes specifically to lure the males to her for mating.

We scrambled over the rocks by the bay and located a dry flat one to sit on for lunch. It was a lovely spot, overlooking the water. We kept our eyes open for waterbirds and anything interesting. Earlier we'd seen some Gannets flying past (too far away to photograph) but on this occasion we had the pleasure of a Shag fly-by.

I often get confused between these and Cormorants, so I decided to look it up and make note of some of the obvious key features to help me tell the difference. Firstly, the bill in the Shag is much more slender, delicate and straight, with this yellow patch at the base of the bill. Otherwise, it's pretty much black/dark all over. The Cormorant bill on the other hand is much thicker, and is curved at the tip. Although it has a yellow base to the bill, it also has a large white patch below the yellow. You can see this in the photo below, which I took a few years ago in Sussex. (In its summer plummage, the Cormorant also has white patches on its head and body.) We'll see if I remember all this the next time I see either species! Having written this blog there's at least a better chance!

As we were sitting quietly on a rock eating our lunch, another species did a fly-by, seemingly not realising we were there until it was closer. It was an Oystercatcher - flying right towards us! They're usually flying the other way and very skittish when you get even remotely near them.

But, the highlight of the afternoon were the Red-breasted Mergansers. Now, in all honesty, at the time we weren't sure if they were Eurasian Goosanders. It's another similar pair of species. I figured I'd take the photos and worry about the ID later! The colouring is similar but apparently the best way to tell them apart is that the Red-breasted Mergansers have a bit of a 'mohican' on their head. They are also the only ones to frequent saltwater apparently.

It was quite extraordinary to watch the behaviour of this female. She would swim along and every so often, extend her neck, open her beak and dip her head down and forwards. Whether this was part of courtship behaviour I'm not sure, since I didn't notice any males nearby. But it was very intriguing to watch and capture on camera.

They swam really close to where we were sitting, giving us lovely views of them. One time, I was lucky enough to capture the moment one female started to 'run on water' just before taking off. It's always lovely to capture these kinds of moments, not just because of the motion of the bird, but seeing the big splash of water in the wake of where it had been sitting just moments before.

It was interesting to note the different things we saw on each of our three visits, over the course of the two weeks. Each day had its own delights, but overall, it was the Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk-moth that I loved the most and had so much fun trying to photograph and video.

If you'd told me 10 years ago that I'd be getting excited about insects, I wouldn't have believed you. But, in many ways, as my interest in nature has developed, I've come to appreciate and love all sorts of different creatures from large to small. They are all part of our planet and worthy of attention, admiration and appreciation. It's the big mammals that usually get a lot of press and attention, but beauty can be found in all sorts of surprising ways and places. For me, there is a joy in being open-minded about what I might see and learn. The more I look, the more I notice. The more I notice, the more curious I become. The more curious I am, the more I want to learn. The more I learn, the more I appreciate. The more I appreciate, the more I love the natural world.

I hope by sharing my experiences in nature it helps to inspire others to enjoy it and become more curious too.

The next post in the series is Visiting Islands Iona, Lunga and Staffa.