Country diary: Arctic terns swirl around a grey stretch of rock

Quarff, Shetland: The birds stab the air, sweeping through mist as if they were assassins plunging blades through moistnessHaar sharpens people's perceptions, for all that it blurs our view of land and sea. On this stroll to the shore, for instance, the lighthouse on the isle of Bressay facing our home has disappeared. There is no glimpse either of the pair of swallows I sometimes come across on my route, darting over the stream that leads to the village's seaweed-strewn beach. Nor am I aware of my usual companion on these strolls, the curlew that arcs in flight, bubbling in alarm, as I approach the vicinity of its nest. Yet I notice - more intensely than usual - other aspects of the shoreline. The small boat belonging to my neighbour, Frank, engine puttering as he lays creels down a short distance from the beach. The oystercatchers' whistles as they flap and seek to divert me from stepping near their chicks. The Arctic terns (Sterna paradisaea) swirling around a grey stretch of rock not far from land. Continue reading...