Evening Wildlife Watching Hide Update September 2026
Introduction
It’s been a great month for sightings from the Evening Wildlife Watching Hide. We have been seeing Badgers, Pine Martens, the Scottish Wildcat, Red Deer, Roe Deer, Wood Mice and Tawny Owls.
The nights are getting darker earlier and this is being reflected in the times the animals are appearing, with many arriving earlier than before. This will likely continue as the year goes on and hopefully we’ll have many more sightings to come.
Badgers
Badgers have been coming to the hide every night so far. On one evening, the dominant male Badger arrived first and began to feed. After he left, a second, smaller male came in, followed by three females. They fed together peacefully before gradually leaving at different times.
As the night went on, another two females arrived separately to feed, meaning we had seen most of the individuals that night.
There have also been nights with a few squabbles. On one occasion, two Badgers growled at each other and started fighting before somehow cooling things off and going back to feeding as if nothing had happened.
Pine Martens
We have had Pine Martens visiting on several nights this month. On one evening, about an hour into the watch, a male Pine Marten appeared and started feeding on the platform. It stayed for around ten minutes before leaving.
Half an hour later, the female showed up and began to feed before descending to the ground and running off. It’s far from guaranteed that we’ll see one Pine Marten in an evening, let alone two, so this was a particularly good night.
Scottish Wildcat
The Scottish Wildcat had been away for quite a long period, but one night it returned and was spotted as we were walking to the hide. It scurried away at our approach, but was later seen again from the hide as it made its way down the hill.
It wasn’t seen again that evening and I thought it had probably gone hunting in the nearby fields.
Other Wildlife
There have been plenty of Red Deer and Roe Deer in the field below the hide. Among the Red Deer, we’ve been seeing females and calves.
One night, a Tawny Owl perched in a birch tree, silhouetted against the night sky, before flying off. There have still been Wood Mice around too, although they have become less common as winter approaches.
A Wren appeared late one evening, which was a surprise and something I’ve never had happen before at the hide.
On our walks back to the car park, we have seen Leopard Slugs and Brown Slugs, as well as Palmate Newts, Common Frogs and Common Toads.
The night sky has also been spectacular, with constellations including Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Draco, Hercules, Delphinus, Lyra, Cygnus, Cassiopeia and Perseus visible during the evenings.
If you would like a chance to see our nocturnal visitors, go to: http://bit.ly/sw_EWW to book your place.
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