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Scotland 2014 Outer Hebrides & the Highlands

22 May – 7 June 2014

St Kilda Wren, Hirta, St Kilda, Scotland, 30 May 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

Vincent van der Spek, July 2014

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highlights Red Grouse (20), Ptarmigan (4-5), Black Grouse (5), American Wigeon (1), Long-

tailed Duck (5), three divers in summer plumage: Great Northern (c. 25), Red-

throated (dozens) and Black-throated (1), Slavonian Grebe (1), 10.000s of Gannets

and 1000s of Fulmars, Red Kite (5), Osprey (2 different nests), White-tailed Eagle

(8), Golden Eagle (1), Merlin (2), Corncrake (2), the common Arctic waders in

breeding habitat, Dotterel (1), Pectoral Sandpiper (1), sum plum Red-necked

Phalarope (2), Great Skua (c. 125), Glaucous Gull (1), Puffin (c. 20.000), Short-

eared Owl (1), Rock Dove (many), St Kilda Wren (8), other ssp. from the British

Isles (incl. Wren Dunnock and Song Thrush from the Hebrides), Ring Ouzel (4), Scottish Crossbill (9), Snow Bunting (2), Risso’s Dolphin (4), Otter (1).

missed species

Capercaillie, ‘Irish’ Dipper ssp. hibernicus, the hoped for passage of Long-tailed and Pomarine Skuas, Midgets.

Ptarmigan, male, Cairn Gorm, Highlands, Scotland, 3 June 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

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introduction Keete suggested Scotland as a holiday destination several times in the past, so after

I dragged her to many tropical destinations instead it was about time we went to the

northern part of the British Isles. And I was not to be disappointed! Scotland really is

a beautiful place, with great people. Both on the isles, with its wild and sometimes

desolate vibe and very friendly folks and in the highlands, there seemed to be a stunning view behind every stunning view.

This was a family holiday, so I mainly focussed on finding the country’s specialties

during a few very productive days that I went out birding alone. Additional birding

was done during family events that often took place in wonderful areas with good

birds.

I succeeded very well in my attempt to see the specialities, as I managed to find all

of my targets except Capercaillie – a bird I did not really expect to see anyway (one

can always hope!). My target list was not only based on potential new birds

(Capercaillie, Ptarmigan and Scottish Crossbill), but also on the endemic subspecies

of the British Isles, as I’d only seen a few of these on trips to England and Ireland.

An overview of all endemic subspecies can be found in this online Bird Watch

article. Furthermore I really wanted to see several species that only migrate or

winter in Holland in their breeding habitat. I very much enjoyed displaying Dunlins

and singing Golden Plovers on the moors! Last but not least visiting St Kilda was a childhood dream come true.

itinerary We both wanted to visit the coast and the highlands. The Outer Hebrides is an

excellent place for birding late spring in a beautiful coastal setting. Most birders head

for Benbecula and North and South Uist, but we decided to go to Lewis and Harris

instead, because this gave me the opportunity to visit St Kilda. We stayed in a

cottage in Tolsta Chaolais on the west coast of Lewis for a week. We spent the

second week in a cottage in Newtonmore in the Cairngorms NP. The highland

specialties can be found in other parts of the country as well, but since most info on

where to find them comes from this area, I decided to make things easy on myself.

22 May Flight Amsterdam – Edinburgh; night in Edinburgh

23 May Edinburgh – Inverness; night in Inverness

24 May Inverness – Ullapool (lunch at RSPB Tollie Red Kite); ferry

Ullapool – Stornoway (Lewis); ride Stornoway – Tolsta Chaolais

Outer Hebrides:

25 May Lewis: surroundings of Tolsta Chaolais and Callanish

26 May Lewis: Loch na Muilne (RSPB Reserve); Dalmore (Dail Mor); Stornoway castle park; Tiumpan Head

27 May Harris: Ballalan, Tarbert, Laxdale River; Taransey Sound

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28 May Lewis: Loch na Muilne (RSPB Reserve); Stornoway castle; Tiumpan Head

29 May Lewis: Port of Ness and surroundings

30 May St Kilda (Scottish National Trust Reserve), incl. drive Tolsta – Leverburgh on Harris to take the boat.

31 May Tolsta – Stornoway; Stornoway – Ullapool ferry; drive Ullapool –

Newtonmore

Highlands:

1 June Loch Garten/ Abernethy forest (RSPB Reserve); Insh Marshes (RSPB Reserve)

2 June Loch Garten/ Abernethy forest (RSPB Reserve)

3 June Rothiemurchus; Loch Morlich; Glenmore Forest Park; Cairn Gorm mountain

4 June Loch Morlich, parking lot Cairn Gorm mountain; Newtonmore

5 June Lochindorb; Newtonmore

6 June Abernethy (RSPB Reserve), Loch Ruthven (RSPB Reserve), grouse moors between Farr and Tomatin; Loch an Eileen

7 June Newtonmore – Edinburgh airport; flight Edinburgh - Amsterdam

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Northern Fulmar, Hirta, St Kilda, Scotland, 30 May 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

timing The end of May and the beginning of June is a very good time to visit these areas. All

breeding birds have arrived and are often in their best plumage, in full song and/or

displaying, it’s a good time for seabirds and there’s still migration going on.

Especially on the Outer Hebrides anything can turn up anywhere! I hoped for some

Pomarine and Long-tailed Skua passage, but the wind blew from the east instead of

the west.

It’s too late in the season to see lekking Capercaillie. The RSPB organizes so called

Caperwatches in Abernethy earlier in the season; officially they run to 31 May, but

this year, so I was told by an RSPB-employee, they stopped earlier due to inactivity of the birds.

logistics I arranged everything myself, mostly in advance.

We flew KLM for € 184, - per person.

The nights in Edinburgh and Inverness were both booked at the Premier Inn

I booked a type C (a Ford, as it turned out) Hertz car in advance for 17 days for € 507,-

Prices and availability of the cottage (Taigh Bhe) on Lewis can be found at: http://www.taighbhe.com/

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For the one in Newtonmore, see: http://www.newtonmoreholidaycottage.co.uk/

The Ullapool-Stornoway (Lewis) ferry was booked at http://www.calmac.co.uk/ (€ 165,-).

The trip to St Kilda was booked at Sea Harris, a company I certainly recommend

http://www.seaharris.co.uk/ (€ 220,-).

Red Grouse, female, grouse moor between Farr and Tomatin, Scotland, 6 June 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

weather There you have it. Typical Scottish weather. We needed a lot of… sunscreen! There

were a few showers (nothing too serious) on the first three and the last three days

(with some serious rain during one evening and night), but on the other eleven days

we had no rain at all. The trip started off a bit windy, but in the second part of the

week on Lewis the wind eased down. During my trip to St Kilda there was absolutely

no wind at all, which is a very rare on the Atlantic. Though some days were overcast,

we witnessed a lot of sunshine. Temperatures during the day were between 13 and

21 °C. No complaints about the weather!

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Great Skuas, Hirta, St Kilda, Scotland, 30 May 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

site descriptions Instead of adding a map with the sites visited, I added links to some of my sightings which indicate the spots far more accurately.

Outer Hebrides

Any foreigner will say that Lewis and Harris are one and the same island and

geographically that’s true. They are however historically treated as two different

areas. For recent sightings on the Outer Hebrides check Western Isles Wildlife maintained by Steve Duffield.

Lewis

Stornoway and surroundings (24, 26, 28 and 31 May)

Stornoway is the largest settlement on the island. The harbour is a good place for

gulls, though I couldn’t find any white wingers. I did see a Black Guillemot when we

arrived with the ferry. Stornoway Castle has a large, lovely old park with big trees.

Safe a few small pine forests, this is the only forested area on the island. It even has

an heronry and a rookery. The endemic island subspecies of Wren and Dunnock can

be seen here. North of Stornoway and immediately east of the airport (Corncrakes

breed there, or at least did in the past) I visited the peninsular. On the smallest

point, along the A866 there’s a small loch: Loch Braigh na h-Aoidhe (when I try to

pronounce this, it sound Arabic rather than Gaelic!). This is a busy road, but there

are two laybys. A scope is necessary. I was surprised to find five Long-tailed Ducks

there this late in the season. The Tiumpan Head is on the far end of the peninsular

and this is a good area for sea watching. Fulmars breed on the cliffs.

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Callanish, Lewis, 25 May 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

Loch na Muilne (26 and 28 May)

Loch na Muilne is the only place on Lewis and Harris where Red-necked Phalaropes

are known to breed. It’s situated behind the Black House museum in Arnol. Both the

museum and the RSPB Reserve are clearly signposted along the A858. More about

the reserve can be found on this page of the RSPB website. This is the exact spot

where I saw two phalaropes. It’s a pleasant walk from the road to the viewing

‘platform’. To not disturb any breeding birds, it’s probably best if you view the birds

from there and not from the edge of the loch. The phalaropes arrive in the second

half of May. This year the first sighting was on 20 May, when no less than six birds

were reported. Sure enough, there’s quite some vegetation in the loch, more than in

most others, the area is uncultivated and there’s hardly any disturbance, but I

couldn’t exactly tell what makes this loch so special for the phalaropes. It’s a lovely

area though and I had it all for myself. I had great scopeviews of two birds in a

territorial dispute. After a little internal discussion I decided that getting closer to

make pictures would only add a few snaps to my own collection and nothing else.

Other breeding birds included many Lapwings, Redshanks and Skylarks. Other birds

seen: a single Teal, 5 Ringed Plovers and a displaying Dunlin. The peace and quiet

was only disturbed by Erik, who called me from Holland asking me questions about a Caspian Gull with a ring from Belarus I photographed back in February.

Port of Ness and surroundings (29 May)

This is a great area around the far north of the island, with several good birding

spots. I visited the area with my family during the afternoon. That evening I went

back alone after diner. The Butt of Lewis with the lighthouse can be good for sea

watching. It’s a good place to see cetaceans and Basking Shark. The cliffs have

breeding Fulmars and Black Guillemots. I didn’t do a sea watch, but I did see a Puffin

passing by. The dune park in Eoropie is worth the walk for the views alone. I was

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surprised to see two circling White-tailed Eagles that were joined by another three

20 minutes later, mopped by three Buzzards. All birds were immatures. One bird was

a 3rd cy, all others were probably 2nd cy birds (two certainly were, due to bad light it

was hard to get any certainty about the other two). Local bird man Tony Marr

emailed me that he’d never seen so many up there, and Steve Duffield told me he’d

only ever seen five together on the Hebrides once, so this was a quite unusual

sighting (followed by s sixth bird, an adult, near Carloway the same day). It’s great

to see breeding Wheatears here, a bird that has disappeared in large parts of our

dunes in Holland. Loch Stiapabhat is a great place, with a very good hide. An

American Wigeon had been around since 16 April, but the bird hadn’t been reported

for a couple of days. I was therefore delighted that it was still present, only my third

ever in Europe. At night I heard two Corncrakes at eastern end of the loch, but

they’re also often heard (and seen) around the hide. An Otter in the loch was a great

bonus (three were present at the time according to the log book). Displaying Snipe

and Redshanks are common and allow good views. Small numbers of waders are

present here and on the wet meadows west of the loch, with dozens of Dunlins, a

female Ruff and a surprise Pectoral Sandpiper that I found in front of the hide in the

evening.

Harris (27 and 30 May)

Harris is stunningly beautiful. It’s mountainous, there are large sea lochs and it has

lovely sandy beaches. The higher parts seemed to be devoid of birds other than a

few Meadow Pipits and Wheatears. There’s a large sea loch near Ballalan. A little

west of the loch I found a Golden Eagle. Tarbert is a beautifully situated settlement.

Around the harbour I saw my only Glaucous Gull of the trip and there were several

divers around. In Tarbert I saw my only Dunnock on the Hebrides outside

Stornoway. The Laxdale river mouth and the Taransay Sound are beautiful and worth

the visit for the views alone. Best bird was a White-tailed Eagle here, but there are

also Little Terns and good numbers of loons around, including one Black-throated in

winter plumage. On the very quiet morning of the 30th I could hear both Red-

throated and Great Northern calling! The harbour and surroundings of Leverburgh are described at the St Kilda section.

St Kilda (30 May)

St Kilda is of course a legendary place. Due to its history, yes, but when the

archipelago is mentioned in the vicinity of birders two words pop up: seabirds and

wren. St Kilda’s seabirds are spectacular. All numbers mentioned are from a survey

conducted in 1999. Puffin is the most common bird, with 135 000 pairs. With 60 000

Gannet pairs, about 20 percent of the world population, St Kilda has by far the

largest gannetry in the world. With 66 000 pairs it holds the largest Fulmar colony of

the British Isles and with 45 000 pairs St Kilda is of major importance for Leach’s

Storm Petrel, but you won’t get to see them unless you stay overnight (camping is

possible). The last survey of St Kilda Wrens on the main island of Hirta revealed 113-

117 singing males, in 1993. Even in the field the wrens are quite distinctive: they are

rather grey and cold-toned in colour and the plumage is very barred. They are a bit larger than birds on the mainland, but this was not evident in the field.

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(Source: Wiki Commons)

Once you’ve reached Lewis and Harris it´s relatively straightforward to visit the St

Kilda archipelago. Despite it’s an expensive day trip, it’s great value for money. The

boats leave from the harbour in Leverburgh, in the southern part of Harris. From

Tolsta Chaolais the drive to the harbour took an hour and a half. Departure is around

8:00 AM, the return is around 7:30 PM. The boat ride to the archipelago takes nearly

three hours. At Hirta, St Kilda’s main island, you get a briefing form the ranger and

then you have 4, 5 hours to wander around anywhere you want. After some tea on

the boat, you’ll circumnavigate the islands of Stac an Armin, Stac Lee and Boreray to

watch seabirds on the cliffs, mainly to see the huge amount of Gannets before the return trip to Leverburgh.

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The old village at Hirta, St Kilda, 30 May 2014 (Vincent van der Spek)

The boat trip is good for birding of course, with many alcids, Gannets and Fulmars.

Black Guillemots and Great Northern Loons were only seen during the first 45

minutes of the trip. Near Kilda I saw the only Manx Shearwater of the trip. Both on

the way to St Kilda and on the way back we saw two Risso’s Dolphins. Grey Seals are regular.

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Great Skua on Hirta, with Boreray on the background, St Kilda, 30 May 2014 (Vincent van der Spek)

The map below indicates the areas I explored on Hirta.

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1 The village remains

Good place for the wrens (in all about eight found), close encounters with Fulmars.

Snipe, Wheatear, Starling, Meadow Pipit and Rock Pipit are as common here as

anywhere on the island, as is the endemic sheep race: the Soay. Three Collared Doves were somewhat of a surprise.

2 North-western valley

St Kilda is a military base. There’s a paved road on the island. You can walk up all

the way to the military base, but after I reached the ridge, I headed down into the

valley (no trails or roads; nr 2 on the map). Up to a hundred Great Skuas were

present here, including 45 in a small pond near the Baie Glen bay. It was a great

experience to be in the middle of this colony! A male Snow Bunting was a bit out of

the ordinary: I don’t think they are usual in this time of year.

3 Ruival / Dùn

Along the walk to Ruival and the cliffs adjacent to Dùn small numbers of Great Skuas

can be found. Around Ruival I found 12 Golden Plovers, 6 Ringed Plovers and six

Dunlins. A perched female Merlin was a nice sighting. Fulmars are common and small

numbers of Puffins were seen on Hirta and Dùn (you can’t enter Dùn, but from the

cliffs on southeast Hirta you have a good view; it doesn’t seem to be easy to get

close to Puffins on Hirta), but scanning the sea revealed at least 15 000 Puffins, a

spectacular sight!

St Kilda Wren, Hirta, St Kilda, Scotland, 30 May 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

The boat trip to Stac an Armin, Stac Lee and Boreray was spectacular. I couldn’t

believe the number of Gannets! A few thousand Puffins were present, too and

hundreds of Guillemots were seen in in colonies. Great trip, the steep price to visit Kilda was soon forgotten!

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Northern Gannet, 4th cy, Boreray, St Kilda, Scotland, 30 May 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

Highlands

Tollie Red Kites RSPB Reserve (24 May)

We had a pleasant lunch stop at the reserve on our way to Ullapool. The drive from

Inverness takes about half an hour. The reserve is signposted along the A835. More

info, including directions, can be found here. It’s a lovely country site area. The kites

are fed late afternoon, so we were too early for this, but we saw four birds anyway. Other species present included Mistle Thrushes, Ravens and Yellowhammers.

Abernethy/ Loch Garten (1, 2 and 6 June)

This well known and intensively visited RSPB Reserve is mostly known for its

breeding Ospreys. As an ecologist I´m very much interested in getting the public

involved and in earning money for conservation purposes. I was impressed how the

RSPB Osprey thing was commercialised. I happily paid the five quid to experience

the event. It’s not really a birder´s thing there and for me it was way too crowded,

but I was impressed to see how the RSPB managed to get the general public

involved. There´s a big hide, loads of TV screens with live footage of the nest, there

are telescopes and bins, there´s a shop and there are volunteers around to answer

questions. There are feeders to see other birds as well. On the far right of the area,

Capercaillie is sometimes seen (unfortunately the hide doesn’t open until 10.00 AM).

After I’d soaked in this green marketing I left the area and went birding in a more

quite place. The road south of the hide is good, as is the trail from Loch Garten to

Loch Mallachie. Crested and Coal Tits are common, Redstart can be seen and heard

in many places. The lochs hold Goldeneyes. The wetter areas have Four-spotted

Chasers and Large Red Damselflies. Though not abundant, a bit of walking around

should produce crossbills. On the morning of the 6th I visited this area alone. Within

2,5 hours I encountered two, one and four crossbills, the first ones I identified as Common, and the other five birds as Scottish.

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Insh Marshes (2 June)

Insh Marshes holds no highland specialities, but this area near Kingussie is worth the

visit for the views alone. The views from the hide are excellent and the scenery is

very different from the other sites in the highlands. And as usual in the UK, the hide

was brilliant. I didn´t see much out of the ordinary, save two hybrid Carrion x

Hooded Crows. Displaying Curlews with their mystic and sad songs are always a

treat. More about this RSPB Reserve can be found here.

Aviemore – Gairn Gorm road (3, 4 and 6 June)

The road between (B970) Aviemore and the car park for the funicular to Cairn Gorm

Mountain is good for birding. Crested Tits and Tree Pipits are common. Several areas

are recommended. Loch an Eileen in Rothiemurchus is signposted well. It’s a scenic

loch, with some nice birds around. Two Wood Warblers were singing, one behind the

car park and another one behind the toilet building. There was a Grey Wagtail

around and on the loch I saw a Goldeneye with four chicks. The moor just behind

(east of) the dogsled centre is a good place for Black Grouse, though you need a

scope. The dogsled centre itself is signposted (red sign). Pass the sign until the area

opens up on your left. There’s a layby on the right. At the far end of the moor there

is a relatively small patch of grass. On the left the building of the dogsled centre can

be seen. On the grass Black Grouses are displaying early in the morning. On the

moor I found an Osprey nest in a dead, solitary tree (that probably all regular

visitors know about – but I didn’t). Loch Morlich becomes crowded with watersport

fanatics during the day, but early in the morning I had wonderful views of a sum

plum Red-throated Loon. The Glenmore Forest Park is a great, very scenic place for a

walk in a park like area. It seemed to be a good place for Bull Finch and a Spotted Flycatcher showed well.

Ptarmigan, female, Cairn Gorm, Highlands, Scotland, 3 June 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

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Gairn Gorm & Ben Macdui (3 June)

Gairn Gorm (1245 m ASL) and Ben Macdui (1309 m ASL) are the sixth and the

second highest mountains in the UK.

This is the place in Gairngorm NP for the high altitude specialties. The car park (pair

of Red Grouses there) is the starting point. There are two options: either take the

funicular (£ 9; first train at 10.00) up to the Ptarmigan restaurant, situated near

Cairn Gorm, or walk all the way up (free). To limit the number of visitors on the

mountain itself, train passengers are not allowed to leave the restaurant area. Hikers

are allowed to go anywhere they want – the restaurant included. There’s a hikers

check-in, so you can’t cheat! For people who take the funicular there’s a platform

with good views on the surroundings and the goodies can be seen from up there as

well. I decided to walk the way up, which I recommend to anyone reasonably fit. It’s

not Everest! On the way up I stumbled upon four Red Grouses and a pair of Ring

Ouzels, another pair was present around the restaurant. I walked around for quite

some time, went to the Cairn Gorm top, and walked in the direction of Ben Macdui,

where I heard a Dotterel calling but no matter what I tried, I never managed to find

the bloody thing! Close encounters with a Ptarmigan pair was a great reward. I saw

another male and heard two more birds in the surroundings. After a well deserved

coffee at the restaurant I was treated with a singing male Snow Bunting on the viewing platform.

Snow Bunting, singing male, Cairn Gorm Mountain, Scotland, 3 June 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

Lochindorb (5 June)

I visited this area northwest of Grantown-on-Spey with the kids during a rainy

morning and fell in love with this excellent grouse moor! It was dry when I reached

the southern part of the moor and fortunately it stayed dry for over an hour. I found

two pairs of Red Grouses without any effort. One of the pairs had at least four downy

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chicks. Golden Plovers, Curlews and a Dunlin were displaying on the moors, together

with Redshanks, Lapwings and Common Sandpipers. I arrived a few minutes too late

to see a fishing Osprey, but I did find what other birders were looking for: a beautiful

Black-throated Loon in sum plum on the south end of the loch. As the kids couldn’t

get enough of throwing stones in a puddle, that I enjoyed prolonged scope views. The bird even called several times. For directions check this link.

Loch Ruthven and surroundings (6 June)

This too is an RSPB Reserve. The setting is very different from the others sites I

visited in the highlands. The loch itself is surrounded by a moor, but in the wider

surroundings there’s quite some agricultural land, with few people around. The hide

is a more simple one than the others I visited this trip, but it’s efficient and

charming. Loch Ruthven is of course well known for their Slavonian Grebes. About

half of the country’s population breeds in this loch. 2014 seemed to be a bad year,

with only a few birds around. I finally managed to see one during the hour I spent

there. Little Grebes were abundant. I drove the scenic route back to Newtonmore

and took a turn to the southwest at Farr, towards Tomatin. You’ll pass an excellent

grouse moor here, with the best traffic sign I’ve seen in a long time (‘Caution chicks

on road please drive carefully’). I did not have much time left, but I managed to see

two Red Grouse pairs. Best however was a family group of Scottish Crossbills I

stumbled upon. The male, female and three juveniles showed well in a few pines.

They produced both excitement and flight calls and the male was even singing briefly. With this sighting I ended a lovely trip in style.

Scottish Crossbill, female, between Farr and Tomatin, Highlands,

Scotland, 6 June 2014 (© Vincent van der Spek)

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lists

birds

Mute Swan Occasionally seen on lochs on Lewis and Harris

Greylag Goose Together with Mallard the most common bird on

lochs; especially common on Lewis and Harris

Barnacle Goose One over Edinburgh the first day

Common Shelduck Small numbers on the Outer Hebrides, mainly

on Harris

Mallard Common

Eurasian Teal Small numbers on lochs, mostly on Lewis, but

also a few in the highlands, e.g. on Loch

Garten. Two dablings seen near Tolsta Chaolais,

Lewis.

Eurasian Wigeon A male on Loch Stiapbhat, Port of Ness, Lewis,

in the company of the following species.

American Wigeon This male had been present on Loch Stiapbhat,

Port of Ness, Lewis since 16 May. I twitched it

on the 29th. Good views in front of the hide.

Tufted Duck A regular bird on the lochs.

Common Eider Surprisingly small numbers seen: a few in the

harbour in Edinburgh, about 15 in the Sound of

Taransay and around Leverburgh harbour,

Harris and a pair on St Kilda.

Long-tailed Duck Five on Loch Braich na h-Aoidhe on the 26th on

the peninsula north of Stornoway was

somewhat of a surprise given the date; both

males and the three females were all nearly in

full summer plumage.

Common Goldeneye Only females seen! Regular on lochs in the

Highlands; e.g. six on one day around

Abernethy, Loch Garten and Loch Mallachie and

a female with three chicks on Loch an Eileen.

Red-breasted Merganser Small numbers on sea lochs, Sound of Taransay

and Leverburgh, Harris.

Black Grouse Endemic ssp. britannicus. Five displaying males

on the land of the Dogsled Centre, between

Rotiemurchus and Loch Morlich, seen from the

road (B970). Coming from Aviemnore, pass the

red sign ‘Dogsled Centre’. Shortly after the turn

to the centre the area opens up on your left.

There’s a small layby on the right side of the

road. The birds are not on the heather moor,

but on the grass of the centre (you’ll see a

small building) on the far end of the moor.

Scope necessary.

Red Grouse Endemic ssp. scoticus. Three and two on two

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different days on two different spots around the

car park of the funicular; two during the walk

up to the Ptarmigan restaurant, two pairs and a

few chicks on the southern shores of Lochindorb

and two pairs on the heather moors between

Tomatin and Farr.

Ptarmigan Endemic ssp. millaisi. Eyeball to eyeball with a

stunning pair on the Cairn Gorm Mountain was

a highlight. Another male seen from the

platform looking down and one ore two more

heard in the surroundings.

Great Northern Loon In all c. 25 birds seen, the majority in summer

plumage: 3 from the Ullapool – Stornoway

ferry, 3 around Tarbert, 10-12 in the Sound of

Taransay, 8 west of Leverburgh during the St

Kilda trip

Red-throated Loon On the Hebrides most birds were still at sea,

e.g. up to 20 around the Sound of Taransay and

small numbers at other places on Harris. I only

saw two birds on a loch, near Tarbert. I saw

one bird in the highlands, on Loch Morlich. Most

were in summer plumage.

Black-throated Loon One in the Sound of Taransay and a sometimes

calling bird in summer plumage in the southern

part Lochindorb. Great bird to observe!

Little Grebe Common on Loch Ruthven, with over 15 birds

seen including four chicks and three fighting

adults.

Slavonian Grebe Only one seen and unfortunately it was distant,

too! The highest number of birds mentioned in

the log book in the hide this year was six. It

seemed to be a bad year for them.

Fulmar Small colonies on Lewis at the Tiumpan Head,

Butt of Lewis and Dalmore; many 100s on St

Kilda allowed very good views.

Manx Shearwater Only one (!) during the boat ride to St Kilda.

Gannet 10 000s on St Kilda, one of the highlights of the

trip.

Great Cormorant Small numbers throughout; in all no more than

ten seen.

Shag Small numbers along the coast. Seen in

Edinburgh, Ullapool, Lewis and Harris.

Grey Heron Regular. E.g. on quite a few lochs all over

Lewis. One on Stiabaphat struggled to swallow

a still living eel for some time, but finally

managed to do it.

Golden Eagle Scope views of an immature near Ballalan,

Harris.

White-tailed Eagle An immature at the Sound of Taransay, Harris

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and six on Lewis: an adult at Carloway and no

less than five immatures together at Eoropie.

Osprey On the famous nest at Loch Garten I saw one

adult and one chick (two more chicks were

obscured, but could be seen on the video

screens); I stumbled upon another nest near

the Dogsleg Centre.

Red Kite Four at the Red Kite Tollie RSPB Reserve and

one over the road near Inverness.

Common Buzzard Small numbers on Lewis, regular in the

Highlands.

Sparrowhawk Only one bird seen, on the very first day in

Edinburgh.

Kestrel Only a few seen, all en route.

Hobby One hunting for insects during one afternoon in

Newtonmore.

Merlin A female at the moors along the A857, Lewis

and a female on St Kilda.

Corncrake Two birds calling in the meadows west of Loch

Stiapabhat, Port of Ness.

Common Moorhen An adult on Loch Stiapabhat, Port of Ness was

the only one of the trip.

Eurasian Coot Surprisingly only seen on the first day, near

Edinburgh.

Eurasian Oystercatcher Common on the Outer Hebrides and regular in

the highlands.

Common Ringed Plover Five at Loch na Muilne and six on St Kilda.

Golden plover Regular on Lewis and Harris, a group of twelve

on St Kilda and several on the moors around

Lochindorb. Several birds were displaying, but

most were in pre-breeding season groups.

Dotterel A calling bird on Macdui, Gairngorms was heard

well, but I just couldn’t find the thing!

Northern Lapwing Common throughout.

Dunlin Common on the Hebrides and a few around

Lochindorb. Several birds were displaying.

Pectoral Sandpiper A nice surprise: one in front of the hide of Loch

Stiapabhat, Port of Ness.

Redshank Very common on Lewis and Harris and regular

in the highlands.

Greenshank Regular, though I expected bigger numbers, on

Lewis and Harris. Some birds were displaying.

Common Sandpiper Seemed to be singing on every loch in the

country.

Curlew Numbers of displaying birds on Lewis were

disappointing; regular in the highlands.

Whimbrel One bird near Callanish, Lewis was the only one

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of the trip.

Ruff A female on Loch Stiapabhat, Port of Ness.

Common Snipe Common on Lewis and St Kilda, with many

displaying birds.

Red-necked Phalarope Two adult females in sum plum on Loch na

Muilne, Lewis.

Great Skua Over a hundred in one valley on St Kilda was a

highlight. Several birds attacked me! More seen

from the boat that day. Four seen from the

Ullapool-Stornoway ferry.

Arctic Skua Surprisingly little seen. Two (both dark birds)

on two different days near the Tiumpan Head,

Stornoway and two together from the Ullapool-

Stornoway ferry, a dark and a pale morph.

Black-headed Gull Common throughout.

Common Gull Common on Lewis and Harris and regular in the

Highlands, with a colony in Lochindorb.

Lesser Black-backed Gull Common.

Herring Gull Common.

Greater Black-backed Gull Regular on the Outer Hebrides, with breeding

birds on St Kilda.

Glaucous Gull A 2nd cy in Tarbert, Harris.

Kittywake Regular along the coast of the Outer Hebrides

and Ullapool, with breeding birds on St Kilda.

Common Tern Common on the Outer Hebrides. Also a few in

the Highlands.

Arctic Tern Common on the Outer Hebrides, with a small

colony on the loch right before the Tiumpan

Head.

Little Tern Three on the beach at the Taransay Sound.

Puffin One past the Butt of Lewis and c. 20.000 on St

Kilda.

Black Guillemot A few seen from the ferry just outside Ullapool,

one in Stornoway harbour and a dozen near

Leverburgh, seen from the boat to St Kilda.

Guillemot Dozens seen at sea from several spots in Lewis

and about 800 on St Kilda and during the boat

ride to St Kilda.

Razorbill About 80 seen from the boat to St Kilda. I only

managed to find a few on St Kilda.

Rock Dove Common on Lewis and Harris.

Wood Pigeon Regular.

Collared Dove Common in villages, but also three on St Kilda.

Eurasian Cuckoo Especially common on Lewis, but also a few in

the highlands.

Short-eared Owl One displaying bird late one evening along the

A857, Lewis was the only one of the trip.

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Common Swift Regular on the mainland.

Great Spotted Woodpecker Regular in the highlands. The validity of the

endemic ssp. anglicus is disputed.

Common Skylark What a joy that they are so common on Lewis!

Also regular in the highlands.

Sand Martin Five above Loch Ruthven.

Barn Swallow Common throughout.

House Martin Common throughout.

Meadow Pipit Very common on Lewis and Harris and regularly

encountered on St Kilda; regular in the

highlands. The validity of the endemic ssp.

whistleri is disputed.

Rock Pipit Regular along the coasts of the Outer Hebrides,

St Kilda included.

Tree Pipit Small numbers in open woodlands of the

highlands.

Pied Wagtail Common throughout, e.g. even several pairs on

St Kilda.

Grey Wagtail Only two seen: one along a river near Pitlorchy

and one at Loch an Eileen.

Winter Wren Three endemic ssp. seen: indigenus was

common on the mainland, hebridensis was

regular on Lewis and Harris and about eight

hirtensi were seen on Hirta, St Kilda.

White-throated Dipper Endemic ssp. gularis. Only one seen, along the

river near Pitlorchy during a stopover.

Dunnock Common on the mainland. The endemic ssp.

hebridium was, surpisingly, only seen twice:

one in the park around Stornoway Castle, Lewis

and in in Tarbert, Harris.

Robin Common throughout. Endemic ssp. melophilus

was not distinguishable from the nominate in

the field.

Common Redstart Regular especially in Abarnethy/ Loch of

Garten; a few elsewhere in the highlands.

Northern Wheatear Pleasantly common on the Outer Hebrides. The

most commonly encountered passerine on St

Kilda.

Common Stonechat Family groups only seen on three occasions on

Lewis/Harris.

Song Thrush Regular on the mainland and small numbers on

Lewis/ Harris where the endemic ssp.

hebridensis occurs.

Mistle Thrush Regular in the highlands.

Blackbird Common throughout.

Ring Ouzel Half way between the car park and the

Ptarmigan restaurant at Cairn Gorm there’s a

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sort of sub-station where I found a pair giving

alarm calls, with food in their beaks. Around the

Ptarmigan restaurant there was another singing

male. I briefly saw a female there as well.

Blackcap Only a few singing birds throughout, with only

one on Lewis.

Common Whitethroat Small numbers in the highlands and singing

birds in Carloway, Lewis and Tarbert, Harris.

Sedge Warbler Six singing birds on different spots on Lewis

and one in Harris was somewhat of a surpise to

me, as I associate this species with reed beds.

Several singing in the highlands as well.

Willow Warbler Common throughout.

Wood Warbler Two singing birds at Loch an Eileen: one behind

the car park and one behind the toilet building.

Chiffchaff Small numbers throughout.

Goldcrest Common in pines in the highlands.

Spotted Flycatcher Two in Abernethy Forest and one in Glenmore

Forest Park.

Great Tit Ssp. newtoni. Common throughout. In the field

I did not really see any difference with major.

Blue Tit Ssp. obscurus. Common throughout. In the

field I did not really see any difference with

caeruleus.

Coal Tit Two on Harris: one during a stop in some pines,

one in Tarbert. Common in the highlands. The

endemic ssp. britannicus is less grey and a bit

greener on the upperparts; the underparts

seemed to be a trifle more yellow than in ater.

Crested Tit Endemic ssp. scoticus was quite common in the

highlands, e.g. in pine forests of Abernethy and

along the B970. This ssp. is said to be darker

than ours.

Eurasian Treecreeper Endemic ssp. britannica. A few seen or heard in

the highlands almost every day. Somewhat

intermediate between macrodactyla and

familiaris.

Jackdaw Common throughout.

Rook Common on the mainland and in the Stornoway

Castle Park.

Hooded Crow Common on Lewis/ Harris. A Carrion Crow in

Insh Marshes was accompanied by two

intermediate birds that appeared to be hybrids.

Carrion Crow Common on the mainland.

Common Raven Small numbers seen daily on Lewis/Harris

included a nest behind our cottage with two

nearly fledged chicks. Only a few seen in the

highlands, e.g. around Cairn Gorm.

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Common Starling Common throughout.

House Sparrow Common throughout.

Chaffinch Common throughout.

Linnet Small numbers throughout.

Twite Endemic ssp. pipilans. Only four or five seen on

Lewis, all of them fly by’s of calling birds. So no

estensive views of perched birds unfortunately!

European Goldfinch Regularly encountered.

European Greenfinch Common throughout.

Siskin Common in pines on the mainland.

Eurasian Bullfinch A few calling in Inverness next to the hotel and

good views of several birds around Glenmore

Forest Park. Endemic ssp. pileata.

Common Crossbill Two juveniles in Abernethy seen and heard very

well. Small bills, and they produced ‘klip’ flight

calls. A bird near the Dogsled Centre that

remained unidentified was most probably a

Common Crossbill too.

Scottish Crossbill Endemic. Several encounters of birds which I

figured must have been Scottish. One bird flew

over Newtonmore, giving quite deep “chyüp”

flight calls. 1+4 in Abernethy Forest along the

trail sounded right (similar calls to the

Newtonmore birds). One of them was seen

reasonably well and appeared to be chunky,

different from the Commons I’d just seen. Best

views were of a family (male, female and three

juveniles) between Farr and Tomatin. I heard

excitement calls, flight calls and even a bit of

song. Chunky birds, bills quite heavy, with thick

necks.

Reed Bunting Only two, singing along the shores of Loch

Ruthven.

Yellowhammer Endemic ssp. caliginosa. Several at the Red Kite

Tollie reserve.

Snow Bunting A male on St Kilda was surprisingly shy, but the

singing male on the Ptarmigan restaurant at

Cairn Gorm was very confiding.

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mammals

Risso’s Dolphin Two seen both on the way to St Kilda and on

the way back.

Harbour Porpoise Seen during both the ferry ride to and from

Stornoway, five in all.

Otter One in Loch Stiapabhat, seen both in the

afternoon and the evening of the 29th

Red Deer Several in the highlands, especially around

Rothiemurchus.

Roe Deer Several in the highlands, especially in

Abernethy, but also three road kills between

Newtonmore and Pitlorchy

Red Squirrel One next to the Osprey hide, Abernathey

and a road kill near Kingussie.

Brown Hare Only one, on the moor adjacent to Loch

Ruthven.

Mountain Hare Seven around Cairn Gorm mountain and a

few road kills on the higher parts of the A9

between Aviemore and Pitlorchy.

Rabbit Very common; many road kills as well.

shrew sp. Probably a Common Shrew crossed the road

in front of me near Lochindorb.