Scotland/Alba Regional Weather Discussion 23/04/17 onwards

[mardatha]

I had them round my last house and loved them, the speed and the noise! Miss them up here. They remind me of merlins, the way they fly and the speed they reach.

[Hairy Celt]

Rarely get swifts just here - there were a couple over the harbour early last month but I think they were just passing.  Also more swallows and house martins arrived in May than usual and the first tiddlers are nearly ready to fly.  Funnily enough we have had more bees, various flies (including some biters) and small beetles (which also bite) than usual, but hardly any butterflies this year apart from orange tips in May and now the damned cabbage whites. 

Blackbirds and thrushes hopping around and squawking indignantly earlier this morning while I stole their blackcurrants.

Here comes the rain now...

Edited July 26, 2017 by Hairy Celt

[mardatha]

Constant heavy battering rain and wind here since 8 am HC.

[Hawesy]

Had family visiting the last four days. Real mix of weather. Saturday was awful, Sunday turned out not bad at all as we missed the rain to the south, Monday was glorious and watched dolphins from. Broughty Ferry beach and yesterday was cool and grey (in Edinburgh). Back in Dundee just now and the rain seems to be easing off.

[Hawesy]

Now a totally different day, weather wise. 20c, with plenty of blue sky and sunshine. Very breezy though, which has been a recurring theme this summer here.

Edited July 26, 2017 by Hawesy

[Hairy Celt]

2 hours of heavy rain, now bright and humid....

I forgot earlier about other butterflies seen just outside the village when sunny recently - graylings, ringlets, meadow browns, common blues, speckled woods, green-veined whites and small heaths.  Hardly any of the bigger ones like red admirals, etc. that we get in good numbers on garden buddleias though. The year's highlight so far was a dark green fritillary on Eigg.

[Northernlights]

Nice breeze with blue skies now a fine evening.

[mardatha]

HC my buddleia isn't even out yet.

[Hairy Celt]

It cleared at dusk and some very high cloud appeared, shifting and reforming very quickly, very high up:

Anyone care to classify?

[Hairy Celt]

2 minutes ago, mardatha said:

HC my buddleia isn't even out yet.

I think altitude may be your problem there... or did you prune it in the spring?

[Hairy Celt]

Hey these new faces are fun. Wonder if we could request a wider range of emotions?

[ciel]

On 7/26/2017 at 09:16, mardatha said:

That's funny NL.  neighbour was saying how few we've had here in the village this year, I think I've only seen 3 swallows. We don't get swifts here ever, I don't know why. And not one baby blackbird this year in my garden.

A similar situation here,md. 

Although earlier in the year there were nesting birds in the garden - gathering food etc - the first swallow brood failed and generally there appears to be a dearth of both swallows and martins. I've only noticed a few juvenile sparrows around, not the usual selection of finches and thrushes.

Butterflies, bees, hoverflies also are scarce, locally, at least.

My main common purple-flowered buddleia bush is just starting to flower, but it was pruned very late (May). 

Anyway, today is cloudy for the most part, temp 16C currently, with a cool SW breeze.

I went on a wild goose chase (work) to the Inverurie/Monymusk area this morning and noticed the car indicated a temp of 19C during one of a few sunny intervals!

[Ravelin]

3 hours ago, ciel said:

I went on a wild goose chase (work) to the Inverurie/Monymusk area this morning and noticed the car indicated a temp of 19C during one of a few sunny intervals!

Usually plenty of wild geese around Monymusk, just not the right time of year for it.

Been pretty decent day in Dyce from what I've seen of it through the window at work. Phoned the wife earlier and she was sat out in the garden so it must be warm in Kemnay for her to do that.

[NUT]

Directly to the south/west/north of me skies don't look to bad to the east though they look pretty menacing!

[NUT]

10 minutes ago, NUT said:

Directly to the south/west/north of me skies don't look to bad to the east though they look pretty menacing!

The skies looked better than the shower's actually dropping (not much)

[Sunshineandshowers84]

Was a downpour in EK back of 6 tonight was driving and seen lightning to my south..

[Northernlights]

A mostly good day with sunny intervals and a fresh wind, got another small batch of hay baled . Went to a neighbours to bale some for them and got caught in a late afternoon shower. Only lasted ten minutes but enough to suspend  haymaking.

[Hairy Celt]

Getting a bit quiet around here...

Mixed describes the weather now.  I guess we're relatively favoured in this sort of run, with upper teens and just the odd shower - oh hang on, I forgot it weed down the other day too. Wouldn't mind some warm weather before summer fks off over the horizon on its aging nag for the year.

[ciel]

The most notable feature of the weather today is a very gusty sou'westerly - as I recently discovered when attempting to fix a sheet to the washing line with a zillion pegs.

Apart from that, there have been extended sunny spells, but occasionally threatening rain. Temp a rather disappointing 17C. All in all not great.

[mardatha]

Up in Edinburgh for the day - just to see pavements and people for a change - and the sun was hot but when the showers came they were heavy. Wee bit windy.

[Hairy Celt]

39 minutes ago, CatchMyDrift said:

It's breezy with a few showers and plenty of sun. It suits me (this weather) as I hate the flies at this time of year. I must smell bad as they swarm round me while leaving others alone. The wind means they don't fly or don't smell you, never sure which one it is.

This is the Whiteadder at Abbey St Bathans taken today:

 

I'm thinking about reacting to your photo...

[Hairy Celt]

57 minutes ago, Hairy Celt said:

I'm thinking about reacting to your photo...

[Northernlights]

Great day yesterday for local show and grumpy old farmer on  a tractor 

 

Managed to bale a bit of neighbours hay  late on  after tea and went back this morning to help them take them in. Just in time before the heavens opened and since then we have had numerous torrential showers. A really miserable afternoon.

 

[mardatha]

If there's any chance of warmer nicer weather anytime soon I wish somebody would tell me. This is getting me down - I've been promised a couple of days away, up in my beloved mountains -  but hubby won't go until the weather is warmer. I'm beginning to think we'll run out of time.

[NUT]

Same old pattern of the last few days really. Seems to be a damp start before drying up for a good while then a few showers late-afternoon