Birds of prey were shot, poisoned, trapped or illegally killed in 87 confirmed incidents in 2018 that led to just one successful conviction, according to the RSPB’s annual Birdcrime report. This persecution of raptors including peregrines, buzzards, red kites and owls is the tip of the iceberg, with many more birds vanishing in mysterious circumstances, […]
Tag: red grouse
Scotland’s golden eagles are dying in agony, all in the name of sport
Somewhere bleak and unforgiving in Scotland, a golden eagle is suffering an agonising death. The young bird of prey was photographed last week with a metal trap clamped around its leg in the Crathie area of Deeside in Aberdeenshire. The tourist who took this distressing image sent it to the police who expressed serious concerns […]
Stop the Mass Killing of Mountain Hares in Scotland!
Mountain hares are beautiful little creatures that live in mountainous regions. One of the places they are native to is Scotland. They camouflage into the mountains with their color-changing coat that goes from brown to white in the winter. These precious animals are sadly killed by the tens of thousands every year in Scotland. They […]
Red Grouse and Golden Eagles
I’ve left it late but finally found some Golden Eagles with two birds in the Findhorn Valley yesterday and then another down at Glen Strathfarrar. Although the views were distant and only possible with the scope it always feels special to see these magnificent birds here in the Highlands and completes the trip for me. […]
Scotland’s mountain hare population is at just 1% of 1950’s level
Culling by grouse moor managers is being blamed for the drastic decline of mountain hares on eastern Scottish moorlands to less than 1% of the level recorded more than 60 years ago. A long-term study by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and the RSPB analysed counts of the animals on moorland managed for red […]
Speyside
Mrs D and I have just returned home from a week in the Scottish highlands joining up with son Dan and his good wife Mary and their two young children Martha and Theo. We were based in Nethybridge which is in easy reach of all the wildlife hotspots. Although more of a family holiday I […]
Snipe and Others
I am posting some images from recent trips to Leighton Moss and into Bowland. My main objective was to photograph purple heron and red grouse. My efforts were shown in earlier postings. At Leighton Moss whilst waiting for the heron to show a trip down to the Eric Morecambe hide was good for snipe. Four […]
Grouse Shooting
Recently I made a couple of trips into Bowland looking for some opportunities to photograph Red Grouse in amongst the purple heather. It didn’t quite work out as there was much activity from grouse shooters with guns and dogs. The large estates in Bowland are very busy at this time of the year with shooting […]
