Tag: Scots

Cold sea fog blown onshore, especially along the coasts of northeast England and Scotland. An advection fog — formed when moist maritime air crosses cold coastal water. Can shut down a summer afternoon in minutes.

 A spawning nest built by a female salmon or trout in the gravel bed of a river. She turns on her side and beats her tail against the bottom, excavating a shallow depression into which she deposits her eggs. The male fertilizes them, and she covers the eggs with gravel swept from upstream. A single redd can be two to ten feet long and contain thousands of eggs. It is the architecture of a species' continuity, built and abandoned in the same day.

A stone-built shelter used during summer grazing months on the Hebridean or Highland moor. The journey to the shieling alone was a coming-of-age moment for a child. The paths to shielings were cairned onto the moor as guide-lines through the bog.

 Fine snow or ice particles blown from a ridge or summit by the wind, streaming off the peaks like smoke. Also used for sea spray carried by gale-force winds.

The stiff-legged, exaggerated vertical leap made by gazelles, deer, and some other prey animals in the presence of a predator. Not flight — display. The animal is advertising its fitness, telling the predator: I've seen you, I'm strong, don't bother. Also called pronking. The leap costs energy and gains nothing except the message.

Scots: to wander aimlessly, unguided by outcome or destination. Not lost — choosing not to choose a direction. The word has no anxiety in it.