Muir of Dinnet

Last week we spent a day in the Loch Kinord area.

Our first transect was to the north of the loch, in the Old Kinord area. Parking on a small lane, we searched for the Northern Brown Argus in the fields and woodland clearings round and about. We followed a old grassy track through the site, where there were various old hut circles and derelict farm buildings to explore. There were lots of butterflies flying, but not the ones we were looking for.

In the afternoon, it was a short drive around to the Muir of Dinnet / Burn o' Vat visitors centre where we parked up and had a late lunch. This was a popular place, with lots of families making us of the various marked walking trails around the loch and through the surrounding woodland up to Burn o' Vat, a huge pothole in the hillside. 

Our next survey transect took us through the birch scrub and woodland to the west of the loch.

http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/cairngorms/loch-kinord.shtml

We were rewarded with a sighting of our target species laying eggs of its host plant, Rock Rose. The small white circular eggs can be seen on the leaf surface in the photo.