A Holiday to Scotland...May/June

We planned a holiday to Scotland at the end of last year to ensure we got accommodation and an itinerary to match the ferries to some of the islands of the western isles in the Inner Hebrides as well as a week in the Cairngorms. We have also found from experience that the best weather is usually  late May/early June whem mossies too, are less troublesome than later in the year. This was not particularly a 'birding' holiday but we would be visiting a few 'good' spots!

 We set off on May 18 and stopped for  a lunch break in the  Leighton Moss RSPB reserve and  watched a Collared Dove sheltering from the rain just outside the coffee shop.

A walk around the reserve revealed ... 

a pair of Shovelers

nesting Avocets and Black Headed Gulls

and a pair of non breeding Mediterranean Gulls

A  Pied Billed Grebe had stayed for a few days just prior to our visit!

Next day we were on our way to Coll on the ferry from Oban. A few distant Black Guillemots were in the harbour and soon we were passing Tobermory, Mull into the open sea. Seabirds were few and far between  but there were guillemots and a number of Shearwaters and a single Arctic skua.

Once on the island, a visit to the Totronold RSPB reserve was a priority ... Corncrakes are common on the island and we heard many  although seeing them was a different matter. However patience paid off and we managed a few shots when eventually one bird posed on a wall….

Crekking!

...and then he scuttled off!

A White Tailed Eagle showed up miles away but this is the only distant shot I managed to obtain.

A  few Red Throated Divers were seen throughout our stay on Coll

Great birds!

Hooded Crows replaced Carrion Crows

Redpolls were noted in the few trees on the island.

Pied Wagtails  were abundant.

 To be continued