Mum and cub otters, thermalling and bellies full of blackberries

Well, what a scorcher once again! This August has been truly special this year. Both Jack and Theo were on mull nature explorer tours once again today.

Theo's Tour 18.08.25

In the morning, there were two great flybys by two adult white-tailed eagles and an adult golden eagle thermalling on the skyline, so both eagle species were spotted within the first hour of the tour. If this morning could not get any better, it did, with a mother otter hunting and playing with her two small cubs. The otter then brought in a large prey into the rocks and wandered up the shore before vanishing into their daytime holt. The guests were thrilled as it gave them a great insight into an otter family's world.

Driving a little further down the road, the otters kept on appearing, and the tour encountered a male otter rolling around on an offshore skerry with grey and harbour seals also sunbathing on the same skerry. Then, a Mull rarity: this might surprise some of you, but there are a handful of nuthatches on Mull. So when Theo heard a nuthatch call from the trees behind, it was a species on Mull that's slowly becoming more common over recent years.

Now turning our attention to a striking, pied bird, the black guillemot, the tour had some fantastic views through the scope of a small group, including a juvenile, which is always heartwarming to see. In the distance, there was a juvenile golden eagle soaring over the distant glen, making that two golden eagles for today. All of these sightings were before lunch.

After a nice lunch, the group had another two white-tailed eagles. One of them was clearly a juvenile soaring over the hills, as it was missing the blonde crown and white tail. There was a large group of red deer feeding out on the grass moorland with stonechats constantly calling and landing on top of the bracken. Abruptly, an adult female hen harrier briefly flew through, then vanished.

Lastly, in a more mountainous area, a pair of the majesties of the skies, the golden eagles, were up in the exceedingly hot mid-afternoon sun. This was a surprise as eagles tend to struggle in warm conditions and low winds, as it takes a vast amount of energy to lift themselves into the sky. Then the tour went to another white-tailed eagle territory and enjoyed good scope views of the two adults perched proudly in the pines. The eagles were looking very proud, and what a way to finish a tour full of excellent sightings.

Jack's Tour 18.08.25

On Jack's tour, he had a different game plan to Theo as he decided to try to beat the heat by heading to search for otters, and this plan paid dividends. A mum and cub were spotted, then just a short drive along, Jack found another mum and cub. Now that is just unbelievable and great to know the otters are still thriving on Mull with exciting times with the new generations appearing everywhere. The tour watched the second mum and cub having a nap before they disappeared up the shore into the holt.

A distant golden eagle was enjoying the warm weather, gaining height rapidly, thermalling up with ravens. On the moorlands, the group was searching for harriers, with a stunning young male being found in the moors. Great to see a juvenile of this scarce bird of prey.

With the moral of the story today, the birds of prey were loving the heat so they could spiral high. There were more buzzards thermalling in the distance and yet another distant golden eagle down the glen.

The tour had some unbelievable views of some large majestic stags that now have full antlers in anticipation of rutting season. Finished the day in a very wholesome way with a pair of white-tailed eagles and bellies full of blackberries. Two brilliant tours today in very warm weather and such a vast variety of sightings, and brilliant news to see so many mum and cub otters around at the moment.