Saw a Humming Bird Hawk Moth in the garden here, it was dipping into the flowers of the phloxes."
On 7th April 1934, Rintoul writes of the Balcormo point to point race...
"P to P Races morning sunny and promised well but snow began about 12:30 and got worse and worse till the Point Races had to be abandoned."
30th May 1938
There are very few Hirondinae about, we saw two pairs of House-Martins trying to nest on Dr Eggeling's house and one picking up rind for its rest in Lundin Links."
During the Second World War, it became hard to observe wildlife due to a ban on carrying binoculars, as reflected in the following entries...
26.9.40
The War has made observation very difficult as we can't carry glasses.
6 Jan 1941
Terribly cold, 26° of frost at Coates House. The bath in my dressing room at Balsusney has ice floes in it. The rocks on the shore are covered in ice and there are floes along the shore like the pictures of the Arctic regions. We can't see very well without our glasses.
5 Oct 1941
I have been dreadfully bad about notes, but it is really impossible to make observations when one can't carry glasses.
7 Feb 1943
Have been very remiss about notes but it is difficult to bird without glasses.
2nd Dec 1944
A wet morning and lovely afternoon went to Lundin LInks shore. The ban is off and we may now carry glasses again, so can bird properly once more.
Here are some post-war entries...
14.3.47
Lovely day. Fearful drifts. Went out to see drifts, Kirkton Den full, 8ft drift at top of Station Brae. No trains round the coast and no buses.
15 May 1950
Watched a school of about 1000 Pilot Whales in Largo Bay. They swam to and fro and splashed and puffed. It was most exciting to watch them.
18.9.51
A hedgehog on the doorstep! in the evening
19.9.51
Some of the Grove rooks roosted in the rookery with much talk this evening. It is the first time any have roosted since 10th Sept. On the buddleia at the Grove drawing-room window, we saw three Peacock butterflies and a small Tortoiseshell and two or three Red Admirals.
'The Grove' was the name of the neighbouring house to 'Balsusney' - that of friend, and fellow ornithologist, Evelyn Baxter. Some excepts from her notebooks in the next post.
With thanks to the Scottish Ornithologists' Club for both the information and image.