April is a fantastic month for seeing wildlife in Speyside. The weather is warmer and birds and mammals are starting to breed. There has been plenty to see on and hopefully the sightings will keep on coming. One day I collected some guests early in the morning to look for Black Grouse. I had suggested at 6am start as the Black Grouse come out early to lek. When we got to the site there was no sign of them and I began to wonder if somehow we'd gotten there too early.

March has been an amazing month to see wildlife and there are so many highlights to choose from. One day in March I led a day guide that started in Carrbridge and I took my guests to look for Black Grouse. We had initially said we would start at 8am, but after an initial visit to one of the lek sites and not finding anything, I began to have my doubts and suggested a 7am start just to be sure. I hoped that it wouldn’t be too early in the season.

February is another quiet month for wildlife in Speyside. Winter is still present, but it’s otherwise beginning to change. The summer visitors are not yet here, yet the temperature is beginning to warm up and the daylight starts to get longer. I went into Inshriach Forest one morning hoping to see Goshawks, as this is a good time of year to see them.

Last week, I took two guests out for an Extended Guided Day Out to see as much wildlife as possible in the Cairngorms National Park.