July is another fantastic month for seeing wildlife in Speyside and some great days out have been had. Although most the breeding season is now finished, there are plenty of birds and mammals still around, including many juveniles that are now learning how to be independent and looking for their own territories. Various species of raptors including Golden and White Tailed Eagles have a decent chance of being seen because of new juveniles being around, with this trend likely t

May is one of our busiest months for day guiding in Speyside, and for good reason. It is when the wildlife reaches its peak, alongside June. The summer visitors have all returned and the breeding season is well underway. One of my day guides began in an area of birch woodland, looking for Wood Warblers, Tree Pipits and Pied Flycatchers. We managed to see two Wood Warblers carrying nesting material, confirming they had returned to breed in the area this year. Pied Flycatcher w

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.

October is here and it’s looking very autumnal here in the Cairngorm’s National Park. The leaves are either turning orange or have fallen off. The Ospreys have gone south to Africa, so have the Swallows, Sand and House Martins. The Black Throated Divers and Slavonian Grebes have returned to the coast for the winter. But there is still plenty happening within the National Park and before long we’re bound to get more autumn visitors.

This past summer has been a series of surprises during our Guided Day’s Out. The Summer months always seem a little bit quieter with most birds quietly recovering from raising young. However, with more birds present, provides more food availability for raptors.