THE scattering of purple-flowered mountain pansies along the edge of this forestry track in the Ochils shimmered like a velvet carpet.

The flowers were as deep as any purple can be; the kind of colour that would sit well upon the robe of a monarch.

I hunkered down to my knees to enjoy their exquisite elegance in closer detail – and what regal little gems they were.

Their petals are so delicate with the bottom-most one having the gentlest dab of yellow-orange, set upon which are subtle dark lines that invitingly lead to the centre of the flower, thus beckoning insects to alight and pollinate.

In amongst this purple heaven were a couple of yellow-flowering mountain pansies, standing out from their compatriots and providing the most wonderful contrast in colour.

In the Ochil Hills the overwhelming majority of mountain pansies are purple, but in some parts of the country yellow varieties predominate.

These track edges in the Ochils are always a special place for wildflowers, with bird’s-foot trefoil being especially prolific at the moment, which in turn attracts butterflies and bees. My favourite insect in this part of the hills is the blaeberry bumblebee, a small and rather scarce bee which can be identified by it orange-furred abdomen.

But the dry spring has not been good news for every hill creature. After a good start, it has now turned into a terrible breeding season for frogs due to ditches and upland ponds having dried up completely, resulting in the demise of their tadpoles.

Frogs are relatively long-lived animals, so the failure of this year’s offspring is not necessarily a catastrophe, but they will need a few wet springs in the years to come if they are to maintain their numbers.

@BroomfieldKeith