Back in the gardens ...

I took another batch of colourful photos in Benmore Gardens today, but as I don't have a clue what this insect - seen on the wood of the Andean Refuge at the top of the garden - might be, I thought I'd stick it here for a bit of crowd wisdom. Any ideas, anyone? About twice the length of a housefly, with a narrow body and upturned tail ... To be honest, I've looked through so many photos of Scottish flying insects that I'm beginning to feel my skin crawl!

Yet another late afternoon walk rewarded us with the rattle of a woodpecker somewhere high above our heads - and through Twitter I learned that they have shock absorbing tissue between beak and brain, which seems marvellous to me - and the sight of a couple of red squirrels chasing each other from a peanut-filled feeding box and rushing back to try to get there first for another nut. The air was full of birdsong and heady scents, and there wasn't another soul. They'd presumably, like the squirrels, gone for their tea.

And because it was so wonderfully colourful, I'll stick on an extra photo.