Tombs Of The Isles…. Father Brown Stories…Bumblebees!....
by Bernie Bell - 08:38 on 16 September 2023
Tombs Of The Isles….
And I quote….
“Colin looks closer at Neolithic mortuary practice in Orkney and the Maeshowe-type passage graves in the county.”
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Father Brown Stories
I’d never read the ’Father Brown’ stories of G.K. Chesterton. I watch the television series sometimes - in which the plot and denouement often make no sense at all! I like the clothes, and it’s easy to watch when I’m tired, but it never tempted me to read the original stories.
In ‘Puzzles of the Black Widowers’ by Isaac Asimov…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Widowers
…….one of the characters mentions the Father Brown stories. I am a great admirer of Isaac Asimov….
https://theorkneynews.scot/2020/05/03/i-discover-isaac-asimov/
…….and if he thinks well of a writer it’s likely that I might like that writer, too. We have a volume of Father Brown stories, so I thought I’d give them a try.
It could be said that the use of deductive reasoning links Father Brown and Henry in the Black Widower stories – though I find Henry to be insufferably smug – fact is I’m not too keen on the ‘Black Widower’ stories – when reading them I tended to think that Isaac should have stuck to Sci-fi!
In my view, the master of deductive reasoning is Sherlock Holmes.
Back to the Good Father…and Flambeau.
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Bumblebees!....
The Bumblebee Conservation Trust in collaboration with Highland Titles is launching a new project which aims to create a management plan for the Highland Council based on research and survey data.
They will record and map bumblebees and pollinators using road verges in Caithness.
To find out more visit… https://www.highlandtitles.com/blog/help-save-bees/
Our tuppenceworth’s…….
https://theorkneynews.scot/2017/08/14/bernie-bell-i-can-hear-the-grass-grow/
And - posted as ‘comments‘ in ‘The Orkney News’…..
“Sent: 14 July 2019 18:13
To: Katy Malone
Subject: Records for Great Yellow Bumblebee Hunt
Dear Katy
For years, Bernie and I have been saying that we’ve been seeing Great Yellow Bumblebees on a geranium patch in our garden in Orkney, but have to admit that when we looked for the purposes of the Great Yellow Bumblebee Hunt, all we could see were Common Carder Bees (and possibly Heath Carder), and other common bee species that could not be mistaken for Great Yellows (see https://theorkneynews.scot/2019/06/06/this-summer-help-record-the-rare-great-yellow-bumblebee/#comments). Since then, however, finally we’re pretty certain that I have seen the species on a Fuschia hedge in our garden, and to judge by your fact-sheet the timing is more likely anyway. For your records:
– Single Great Yellow Bumblebee on Fuschia, 6 July and 9 July 2019, in the garden of Velzian, Rendall, Orkney, OS Grid Ref HY419199
Since then, I have also seen the species by the old kirkyard in Rendall (at the ruin of St Mary’s Kirk), and along the low sea cliff between the kirkyard and the Knowe of Dishero (remains of a broch). For your records:
– Single Great Yellow Bumblebee (probably on red clover, but cannot remember for certain), 12 July 2019, by the gate of Rendall old kirkyard, Orkney, OS Grid Ref HY424198
– Up to four Great Yellow Bumblebees on Meadow Vetchling, on low sea cliff north of Rendall old kirkyard, OS Grid Refs HY425197 to HY426200. This included one individual (possibly queen?) disappearing into a rodent hole in the cliff.
I wasn’t able to photograph them on these occasions (they don’t stay still long enough!), but I did get a picture of the rodent hole – picture to follow in a separate email. So, on a warm but slightly mizzly day today, we went specifically to get some pictures to confirm the identification. This led to another nearby record, for which was able to get pictures (one attached, with a couple more to follow). We saw the bee on two separate clover patches, probably the same individual seen twice:
– Single Great Yellow Bumblebee (seen twice) on red clover, on track in Gorseness, Rendall, 14 July 2019, OS Grid Ref HY421201. Photo DSC00979 shows this on one patch of clover, photos DSC00982 and 983 show presumably the same individual on another patch about 10m away.
I searched the sea cliff again, with one sighting that was too brief and distant to be certain, but from size and colouring was probably a Great Yellow.
I know these sightings are not in your target square ND39, but hopefully they are of value anyway. The bee photographs are only for the one at HY421201, but having got my eye in for the black strip across the thorax, and otherwise being yellow, I am confident that all these are of the same species, which hopefully you can confirm as being the Great Yellow. I’m sending the pictures one at a time, as they are rather large – three messages to follow…
Good luck with the bees!
All the best
Mike & Bernie Bell
From: Katy Malone [mailto:katy.malone@bumblebeeconservation.org]
Sent: 15 July 2019 16:51
Subject: RE: Records for Great Yellow Bumblebee Hunt
Hi Mike and Bernie
Many thanks for the wonderful photos and recording information. I can confirm your identification as Great yellow, which is always exciting and valuable information to have even if they were not in one of our target squares. Having photos of nest sites and good habitat is also really a very useful resource. Would you mind if I kept your photos on file as a reference and shared them with other people who are interested in learning about the habitat needs of Great yellows?
Kind regards
Katy Malone
Conservation Officer (Scotland)
Bumblebee Conservation Trust
Charity Number 1115634 (England & Wales) SC042830 (Scotland)
07554 414052
Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Links Office, Golspie Business Park, Golspie, Sutherland KW10 6UB
http://www.bumblebeeconservation.org
Plant ‘Bee kind’ flowers and get your garden buzzing by registering with our free Bee kind tool https://beekind.bumblebeeconservation.org/
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Here’s one I made earlier…. https://theorkneynews.scot/2022/05/11/oxfam-and-robert-rendalls-orkney-shore/
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