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  • Writer's pictureHarris Brooker

Midsummer Moments

At the Speyside Wildlife Evening Hide in the Cairngorms, the action has kept going. The Badgers have kept coming in every day like clockwork. The cubs are still coming in, foraging around in their distinctive, boisterous way. They’re delightful to watch but they’ve yet to learn the etiquettes of being a Badger. More than once they’ve been seen pushing the adults out of the way to get at the same patch of peanut butter on the logs. Even when the adults move on to another one, the cubs butt in just as quickly.

There are three Badgers in this image. One of them has its back to the camera and is facing away. The other two are facing the camera and are feeding on both sides of a large broad fingered log.
Badgers Feeding (Photo Credit: Harris Brooker)

Most of the adults take it well but others are less patient. One of our more junior members is more prone to losing his temper and has given them telling offs through growling and snapping.

This image has in its centre one of the Badger cubs from this year. It is facing to the left and is foraging with its nose bent down. It has a tail that is white at the base and frayed at the tip.
Badger Cub (Photo Credit: Harris Brooker)

There are still Wood Mice and Bank Voles to be seen, scurrying furtively in search of peanuts. There have been sightings of Red Deer in the field below the hide.


There are still birds to see such as Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Chaffinches, Siskins, Blue Tits, Great Tits and Common Pheasants have been appearing too, mostly females, that’s something new this year.

There is a Wood Mouse in the centre of the image surrounded by spruce cones, twigs and needle leaf litter
Wood Mouse (Photo Credit: Harris Brooker)

There is a Bank Vole in the centre of this image sat on a wooden ledge in a wall of logs
Bank Vole (Photo Credit: Harris Brooker)

There is a Dunnock, a greyish brown songbird, in the centre of this image sat on a jutting out stick with a blurred background of green conifer branches.
Dunnock (Photo Credit: Harris Brooker)

There have also been increasing sightings of Red Squirrels during the evenings. Earlier in the year they’d only come during the day, but that’s changed. The Red Squirrels show off their agility to the guests, but as soon as they see a Badger coming they flee. It doesn’t matter that they are high up out of reach, their genetic fear of Badgers is strong enough to make them want to run away just at the sight of them.

There is a Red Squirrel in this image facing to the left whilst clinging headfirst down a tree trunk to the right of the image
Red Squirrel (Photo Credit:: Harris Brooker)

If you would like to attend our evening hide please go to: https://www.speysidewildlife.co.uk/Holidays.aspx?location=evening


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