It’s a new year at our Evening Wildlife Hide. We continue to welcome visitors and wildlife to our hide and look forward to new adventures in the next year. Even though we are in the middle of the Winter months, it certainly does not feel like it did last year. The thick snow and below zero temperatures are scarce so far this year. This means that the Badgers have been more active than usual, as they do not need to conserve energy. Instead of sleeping in the setts, they have regularly been venturing out to the hide.
With our clan of around eight Badgers now, they can sometimes all come in at the same time, but typically they make their own way to the hide throughout the evening. One evening last week, five Badgers arrived at the same time, and it was a treat to watch some family bonding as they fed. We had the oldest bore, the dominant male, adult female as well as cubs from 2020 and last year. It was great to watch them getting on and showing natural Badger behaviour like grooming and scent marking. Spring is in the air with some wildlife as there had also been lots of mating activity and affection shown between a pair.
One of our groups came to the hide hoping to get some photos of these mammals, plus maybe even a Pine Marten. We enjoyed watching the Badgers antics which continued through the evening. Just as energy became lowered as it reached 9pm, there was great excitement when a large Pine Marten popped up the middle tree trunk in front of us. This male was in its full winter coat, so looked very fluffy, made his way to the feeding table, and treated everyone to fantastic views for around 15 minutes to finish off a fantastic evening.
Even though the Winter is mild now, it will surely return soon and make our mammals work for their food. If you are visiting the Cairngorms for a winter getaway, an evening at our wildlife hide is a nice treat to watch these beautiful animals. You can find out how to book here.