Corstorphine HIll

 It was Crafty Green Boyfriend's birthday today, so we took the day off and had a lovely walk round Corstorphine Hill. There's a steep climb to start with, but the rosebay willowherb looks lovely in the winter sunshine 

There are lots of trees around the hill and their winter skeletons are beautiful against the sky 

The gorse is in bloom, adding a lovely splash of colour to the scene 

We continued into the wooded part of the hill and were delighted to see a jay in these birch trees.

I don't think you'll be able to see the jay in the photo, but we watched it for a few minutes. Jays are large, colourful birds but oddly elusive and often difficult to see, so we were very happy with this sighting. The bushy patches in the trees are witches brooms Witch's Brooms are masses of densely branched small twigs, found in birch trees, which are induced by various parasites including some species of fungi, insects, mites or viruses.