Kirkton to Rathen Station, Spring flowers

This morning the temperature reached 16.5c, tempting out a couple of small tortoiseshell butterflies, a very hairy caterpillar and several bees. The section of Line between Fraserburgh and Rathen has been transformed by the recent warm weather. The occasional hawthorns and silver birches are starting to open their leaf buds, the slowest of the willows have catkins. Close to the pond at Craigiewan there are several blackthorn bushes 'wearing white for Eastertide'. The walkway  is brightened by sudden patches of celandines, marsh marigolds and clumps of daffodils and by the ditch feeding the Water of Philorth a small colony of cuckoo flower.

On the far side of the drainage ditch a small clump of Marsh Marigolds (Caltha palustris) and on the near bank the myriad yellow stars of Lesser Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria)

Daffodils on the embankment close to Fraserburgh Golf Club

Daisies (Bellis perennis) and the minute white stars of  Whitlow Grass (Erophila verna)
Whitlow grass grows profusely in the sandiest parts of the track.



The unexpected delicate flowers of Lady's Smock, (Cardamine pratensis) also known as Cuckoo Flower caught my eye growing amongst the young leaves of Comfrey by a ditch feeding the Water of Philorth