Sunday 18 September 2011

The Mull Magic Mantra : Acknowledge, Appreciate, Respect and Enjoy

(Admittedly, it isn’t always that easy!!!)

Putrefaction Guaranteed


As one fly once said to another, “I’m a Bluebottle, what’s that you’re reading?” In typical Spike Milligan fashion, back came the reply : “A fly paper”. Cringe all you like, but it may be the only funny thing there is to know about these blow flies. Although they may also be found enjoying more acceptable insect past-times, such as sourcing nectar and pollen from a variety of wild flowers, Bluebottles have a distinct penchant for dead and putrefying tissue and, as such, are unwelcome visitors to most households – 09/09/11

Sloth and Slimy


Of nearly 30 different species found in Britain, the large Black Slug is the most likely to be encountered on the Isle of Mull. A garden pest of decorative flower beds and cultivated vegetables, we conveniently overlook the vital job that these ‘naked snails’ undertake in keeping our environment detritus free. As enthusiastic recyclers of garden waste and animal excrement, we should give our thanks the next time we pass a slug on the path. If it were not for the army of slugs in the countryside, we may well be up to our knees in… Yeuch! – 20/08/11

Ambivalence and Astringency


Apart from Bracken, few plants have caused such mixed emotions among farmers on the island than the Common Ragwort. Love or loathe, it is a flower of great beauty and charm, and a plant whose juice has long been used to help relieve sore throats and to take the inflammation out of insect bites. It is, however, a great enemy of horse owners and other grazing animals, who will contract an insidious and irreversible cirrhosis of the liver should they eat it. It is probably best that they do not! – 27/08/11

Aesthetic and Arresting


The Isle of Mull’s humid climate is ideal for fungi, whose fruiting bodies are currently sprouting up all over the island. From a purely aesthetic point of view, fungi are quite wonderful organisms, presenting in all manner of colours, shapes, textures, tastes and smells. This Oyster Mushroom is one of very many edible fungi that can be found in woodlands throughout Mull. The gills on the underside of this individual fungus made for an arresting subject for the Mull Magic Macro lens – 09/09/11

Scrawls and Squiggles


Like a human fingerprint, the markings on these Oystercatcher eggs are unique to the bird that laid them. Not only that, but no two eggs possess the same blotches, scrawls and squiggles. These eggs had been laid in a simple scrape, a depression in the stones of the upper shore, above the high tide mark on a local sea loch. This scrape is often decorated with the cast shells that litter many of Mull’s shores. The egg colour provides marvellous camouflage and protection for a clutch that can be left drastically exposed to the elements and predation if the incubating bird is disturbed – 04/05/11

1 comment:

  1. Nice Post. I am totally agree with you. These mantras really helps to the people to solve all there problems. Same like it, the black magic also a way to get out of all the problems taking place in the life. These can be possible only in the guidance of the Black Magic Specialist. Thanks for sharing.

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