Minke's and more

Weather: A few spots of rain to start the day but blown through by the moderate westerly and brightened up nicely into a lovely sunny day!

A great day for sightings from the 2 trips out today:

Theo's private tour and Klay's Nature Explorer. Theo's day started with a male Golden Eagle perched up in the morning sun whilst Klay's team headed straight for the sea lochs.

A family of 2 Adult and 2 Juvenile White-tailed Eagles on an offshore reef with Grey Seals there too. Theo's group headed further on watching a feeding frenzy of diving Gannets and several pods of leaping and foraging Common Dolphins, before to top it off 2 Minke Whales joined in the feeding! All this while Klay's group enjoyed a female Otter and her large Cub foraging not far from the shore as they travelled along the coastline briefly coming into shore.

Both teams reconvened to enjoy a female Otter and her 2 cubs foraging out in a raft of weed giving a great view in the scope before heading to shore for a roll around the weed. 2 Juvenile WTE flew overhead at height and 2 Golden Eagles and another WTE were soaring distantly down the nearby glen. Over lunch a WTE flew by.

Into the afternoon both teams moved to the moorland habitat, seeing a distant Golden Eagle and Hen Harrier. Red Deer were gathered on the flat lands and 2 young Stags briefly sparred! A juvenile Hen Harrier was quartering the grassland and caught a vole eating it in plain view sat on a boulder. It flew off lifting another Hen Harrier out of the bracken, this time an adult female and both birds quartered the moorland independently. Slightly further down the glen we were greeted by a 3 immature WTEs and brief view of a male Hen Harrier before heading for home.

Other species: Red-breasted Merganser, Goosander, Buzzard, Raven, Grey Heron, Bar-tailed Godwits.

Male Golden Eagle perched in the sun