I'm lucky to live in the Cairngorms National Park and I have positioned my bird feeders in my garden so I can sit and watch them from my...

There are currently three species of crossbill recognised in Speyside: the Common Crossbill, the Scottish Crossbill and the Parrot Crossbill, with around six species recognised in the world. Members of the finch family, they have bills which their mandibles crossover. This is an adaptation for extracting the seeds from pinecones. Their genus name is Loxia, the Ancient Greek, meaning ‘Crosswise’. The crossbills use their bills to prize apart the cones segments and they have ba

Here is our monthly update from our hide near Aviemore in the Cairngorms. Our Local Badger Clan - There are at least eight Badgers in our...

It’s a great past time of mine, walking and looking for wildlife at the same time. In the past couple years, gaining more experience as a...

In this blog post we’ll talk about the four most regular owl species found in Speyside and in most of Britain. Because most of these are nocturnal, owls are something of an enigma. So let’s broaden our understand of these charismatic, elusive birds. Tawny Owl ( Strix Aluco ) Tawny Owl (Photo Credit: Speyside Wildlife) This is the owl that makes the classic ‘twit-ti-woo’ noise. What you might not know is that only Tawny Owls make this sound and even then, only the males. The f

Here is our monthly update from our Evening Mammal Hide in the Cairngorms, near Aviemore. Badgers - They’ve been coming in every day...

Here is our monthly update from our Evening Mammal Hide in the Cairngorms, near Aviemore. Badgers - The Badgers have continued to amuse...

Common Buzzard (Buteo Buteo) - One of our commonest raptors and often mistaken for the Golden Eagle, it has been dubbed the ‘Tourist’s...

Our Local Badger Clan - There are at least nine Badgers in our group, one of which is a cub from this year which took almost a month to...

Hello everyone, it’s Harris here and we are back with part two of ‘Botany in Speyside’. Last time we looked at some of the rarest plants...

At our Evening Mammal Hide near Aviemore, the Badgers are still coming regularly to feed and delight our visitors at every turn. There’s...

The action has kept going at our Evening Wildlife Watching Hide and the Badgers have been coming every night. No sign of the cubs yet but...

In this post I’ll be sharing with you our star attractions that appear seasonally in Speyside and the surrounding areas. Some you might...

At our Evening Wildlife Watching Hide, the Badgers have continued to entertain visitors. They feed peacefully most of the time but now...

One of our most elusive mammals in Britain, the Pine Marten captures human imagination. It is a member of the weasel family Mustelidae, alongside the Eurasian Badger, Weasel, Stoat and Polecat. In this post I attempt to capture what makes the Pine Marten so special and why they draw visitors from far and wide. Pine Marten (Photo Credit: Jane Hope) Pine Marten (Photo Credit: Jane Hope) Diet Firstly, I should say that they are a versatile adaptable species that mainly eats mice

At our Evening Mammal Watching Hide near Aviemore, the days are getting longer and we are starting later in the evening. We have had up...

We are spoiled for choice with amazing wildlife here in the Scottish Highlands. From Golden Eagles soaring high above open hills to Red Squirrels scurrying through the canopy of pine woodlands, there is bountiful choice when it comes to wildlife encounters. However, one species that is often overlooked when visiting this area is the European Otter. These elusive members of the weasel family (mustelids) are always a joy to see on our guided days out and often provide a ‘magic

Spring will soon be here in the stunning Scottish highlands. Our Day Guiding throughout February and early March has been fantastic, with...

Our Badgers are still coming in every night with up to eight at a time on occasions. The cubs have grown up over the winter and in the...

The action has kept going at Speyside Wildlife’s Evening Wildlife Watching Hide over the winter. The Badgers are still coming, enjoying...