🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 2️⃣ 4️⃣ A very special bird that inhabits Mull rainforests, the Wood Warbler, a migrant from sub-Saharan Africa, this 'Lemon & Lime delight' is an absolute joy to see and hear in the summer months 🥰 Sound on and listen to that song 🎶

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 2️⃣ 1️⃣  One of the wildlife highlights of this year was undoubtedly the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater seen on the Isle of Iona in June! Only 12 accepted records in Britain! 📷 Alan Lewis (via eBird)

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 2️⃣ 3️⃣  A Short-eared Owl on Mull this summer. With some promising signs in the Spring, it yet again proved to be a poor season for this species on the Isle, with adults dispersing breeding areas early and very few fledglings recorded in July/August.

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 2️⃣ 0️⃣ BTO WeBS counts today (species of note) - Little Egret on Loch Cuin along with 3 Snipe and 7 Greenshank. Salen Bay - Kingfisher (my first for the bay) and 4 Bar-tailed Godwits. Killiechronan - 1st winter Rook, 4 BT Godwits. Laggan bay - 30 Turnstones and 1 BT Godwit.     Some good WeBS sites available to survey around Mull, take a look here - https://app.bto.org/websonline/sites/vacant/vacant-sites.jsp#lon=-6.1669025&lat=56.4

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣ 9️⃣  A Mull Cuckoo and Meadow Pipit... Since 1995, the number of Cuckoos has decreased by over 30%. The  British Trust for Ornithology (BTO)  have been satellite tagging the birds since 2011 in the aim to discover more vial information about the species and what may be causing big declines. Follow the latest updates from the tagged birds, as they all settle in their 'wintering grounds' in the Congo basin...

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣ 8️⃣  Klay had a very cool encounter this year on the island 🦈 🦈  "During an exceptionally low tide, we were filming a family of three otters out on a skerry in the loch when a friend spotted a Small-spotted Catshark quite literally at our feet. We presumed it was dead until we noticed it was still breathing, and we sprang into life! Needless to say, the otters noticing us became a much lower priority. We rushed the shark to the

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣ 7️⃣  After today's news from south of the border pointing heavily towards atrocious wildlife crimes, there is only one species to showcase today...the majestic White-tailed Eagle!  See the link if unaware of the news -  https://www.roydennis.org/

🎄The Nature of Mull (via the Solway!) - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣ 6️⃣  Myself, John and guests spent five days on and around the Solway last week, covering a great range of habitats and seeing a varied mix of species. Find out how they all got on, read the tour report below! ⬇️  https://www.naturescotland.com/blog

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣ 5️⃣  Thank you for sharing another year of unforgettable wildlife moments with us. If you’re still looking for the perfect nature-inspired gift, our online store has something special for everyone – from flexible gift cards for future adventures, to our brand-new 2026 calendar, stunning wildlife prints, and our Nature Scotland clothing range designed for comfort. The last Xmas orders for UK customers will be the 19th December! He

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣ 4️⃣  Colourful Craignure 🌼 🌹 🌸 🐝 🦋 🐞 🐦 This summer, the community green space down at Craignure has again been a frenzy of flowers and is brimming with bees, butterflies and biodiversity! There are pathways going through this flower rich meadow, so people can still easily access the picnic benches and marvel at the magic all around them. Not only is this wildlife haven very pleasing on the eye, there are other essential re

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣ 3️⃣  A Northern Gannet in hunting mode off the coast of Mull.

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣ 2️⃣  A rasping Corncrake on the Isle of Iona!

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 1️⃣1️⃣  Slow Worms! - These beautiful and gentle 'legless lizards' are a joy to see around the island. One of my first 'pets' was a rescued SW called Smiggie (named after my dads good mate). We helped it recover before releasing him back into the wilds.  I helped rescue this SW from a nearby strimmer and sadly thousands of SWs will get killed by these destructive and noisy machines every year on Mull. Leaving grassland to grow longer

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 🔟  The ducks are looking their dapper best during the winter months on Mull, and one of my favourite seasonal spectacles on the island is without a shadow of a doubt...displaying Red-breasted Mergansers! The drakes are so graceful and elegant as they perform to the females, almost like they are showcasing a bow or a curtsy.  If they were on 'Strictly' on a Saturday night, how many points would they be getting!?

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 0️⃣ 9️⃣  Reducing mowing in your garden can have a huge benefit in helping the smaller things that run this planet (the colour and diversity also looks very beautiful IMO), and more bugs also equals more birds, so you are greatly helping the song birds that we all love and cherish.  It is also absolutely not ONE or THE OTHER when it comes to 'no mow may' campaigns, you can manage a section of your lawn as a 'mini meadow' and also hav

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 0️⃣ 8️⃣  Carrion is an essential food source for eagles in the winter months to get them in a suitable condition for breeding efforts towards the end of the season.  🎥 Trail Cam, Golden Eagle

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 0️⃣ 7️⃣  A winter time-lapse of Gribun cliffs...

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 0️⃣ 6️⃣  An auroral solar storm visible from the north of Mull! The island is blessed with some of the darkest skies in the whole of Europe! I am planning to run a Mull Stargazing Evening around the 14th December (weather permitting) to enjoy the spectacular Geminid meteor shower (120 meteors per hour at its peak)...stay tuned for more updates!

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 0️⃣ 5️⃣  A nice success story from the island, Ringed Plovers, bred successfully on the busy beach of Calgary this year! Two precocial chicks were seen scurrying around the strand line feeding on insects. They were again seen at a more advanced stage later on in the summer.

🎄The Nature of Mull - Advent Calendar Day 0️⃣ 4️⃣  The amazing carnivorous plant Great Sundew (drosera anglica) enveloping another victim in the peat bogs of Mull!