Highland Dragons and Damsels
A sunny weekend in the Highlands (it does happen sometimes), which presented a good opportunity to go out and brush up on […]
Category: ecology
ecology
Annoying Ecologists
As someone who works in ecology and conservation, I have had my fair share of abuse and ignorant comments, both during my […]
Bog Day
Today is Bog Day ! Yes, there really is such a thing and its a day to celebrate the brilliance of bogs. I […]
Office Ospreys
Working from the home office has it’s advantages but people often report that it can take great self-discipline to avoid the distractions. […]
Urban Foxes
I’m currently working down in Bristol and recently had a lovely encounter with an urban fox. Bristol is well known for its […]
IEMA Rewilding and Restoration in the North of Scotland
I recently had the pleasure of chairing webinar run by the IEMA North of Scotland Regional Steering Group about rewilding and habitat […]
Kingfisher battling with a huge fish
I took a walk along the riverside on my break today. There have been reports of kingfishers down there but up till […]
Barnacle Geese in Winter
One of my favourite things about winter is finding flocks of geese that have come here to over-winter. Spending a lot of […]
Dont Blame the Predators
I’ve noticed a worrying and increasingly frequent trend recently. Often, when there is a bad news story (and there are many of […]
Red Squirrels in Autumn
Being back on the Scottish mainland recently gave me the opportunity to find and photograph red squirrels. This time of the year […]
Short-eared owls
This autumn seems to have been a good year for short-eared owls that are coming over from mainland Europe. There have been […]
Rosy Starling – Shetland
There have been a few rosy starlings around Shetland in the last eighteen months but somehow I have managed to miss all […]
Shetland Bumblebee
The Shetland bumblebee is one of my favourite invertebrate species I have encountered in Shetland and I have written about them previously. […]
A Tale of Two Rings
I’m a big fan of colour-ringing as it makes identification of individual birds easier in the field and can lead to more […]
Ecological Walkover Surveys – Orkney
July has been a busy month with a lot of survey work across the Orkney Islands. It has been a great opportunity […]
Hermaness Puffins – Shetland
Puffins! Aside from being quite photogenic and capable of making even a bang-average photographer look half decent, there’s more to know about […]
Redshanks – Warden of the Marshes
Redshanks have an old country name of “Warden on the Marsh” because of their habitat of being one of the first birds […]
Botany at Keen of Hamar – Shetland
I’m not a botanist and don’t pretend to be one on the internet but I can appreciate some rare and interesting plants […]
Nest Finding
I’ve found hundreds of nests over the years, but I still get a buzz each time I discover a new one. Here […]
World Otter Day
Today is World Otter Day, a day to celebrate the 13 species of otter which live in Europe, Asia, Africa, North, Central […]
Curlew NestCam – Hatching Chicks
The curlew nest I have been monitoring has hatched. Still wading (no pun intended) through a lot of camera footage, but here’s […]
Wader Wednesday – Upland Wader Nests
I am fortunate enough to be staying in a house in Shetland that backs onto rough grassland, marsh and upland areas. The […]
No Mow May – Shetland Cemetery
I’ve long thought that we under estimate the wildlife value and potential of graveyards and cemeteries. I am not sure if this […]
Wader Wednesday – Purple Sandpiper
The other day I was fortunate enough to come across a group of summer plumage purple sandpipers on a Shetland beach. The […]
Night Heron – Shetland
The last few days have seen south-easterly winds and low cloud and fog over Shetland. This has resulted in a good number […]
Great Skuas (Bonxies) – Shetland
The great skua (Stercorarius skua), known locally in Shetland as bonxies are aggressive but somehow lovable predators. Their favourite tactic is to […]
International Dawn Chorus Day – Upland Birds
This Sunday, 7th May, is International Dawn Chorus Day, a day to celebrate the natural wonder of bird song. This first dawn […]
Wader Wednesday – Eurasian Whimbrel
The Eurasian whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus) is the subject of this week’s Wader Wednesday. Here are a few facts about an often overlooked […]
Coastline Botany
Taking a walk along a coastline gives you a great insight into the diversity of plant life that exists there. Although its […]
Caithness and Orkney Ecology Surveys
Last week I had the opportunity to go over to Caithness and Orkney to carry out some ornithological surveys and ecological watching […]
Brambling in a Shetland garden
One of the great things about Shetland is you are never quite sure what is going to turn up in your garden. […]
BTO Upland Rover Surveys
One of the best things about living in Shetland is the sheer volume of amazing scenery and wildlife on my doorstep. I […]
Ground Nesting Bird Surveys – Ringed Plover
Its that time of year again when the on site checks for ground nesting birds are coming into full swing. Today I […]
Earth Day 2023
Today is Earth Day 2023. I have been fortunate to live and work in some fantastic places with great scenery and amazing […]
World Curlew Day 2023
Today is World Curlew Day. Here are a few interesting (and sometimes depressing) facts about curlews. Curlews are called “the whaap” in […]
Shetland Environmental Watching Brief
Early start today for an environmental watching brief on the shoreline. Incredible weather at both ends of the day, lends itself to […]
Mountain Hares in Shetland
Although Shetland isn’t really know for its mountain hares, there are a few places where you can find them. In the past […]
Orcas in Shetland
It has taken over a year of being up in Shetland, but finally caught up with some of the local orcas at […]
World Sparrow Day 2023
Today is World Sparrow Day. The tree sparrow population in the UK has suffered a severe decline, estimated at 93 per cent […]
Otter posing for the trail camera
Part of my job is to monitor the local otters and make sure our construction works aren’t disturbing them. Although we do […]
World Wetlands Day 2023
Today is World Wetlands Day, a day to raise global awareness about the vital role of wetlands for people and planet. Today, is […]
Wader Wednesday – World Wetland Day
In anticipation of World Wetlands Day tomorrow, this week’s Wader Wednesday is a few wader chick pictures to remind us all of some of […]
Wader Wednesday – Bar-tailed Godwit Migration
For Wader Wednesday this week, it’s the incredible bar-tailed godwit. Last autumn one of these birds broke the world record for the longest […]
9 Reasons Ecologists Need A LinkedIn Profile
What is LinkedIn? LinkedIn isn’t just for tech geeks, marketers and wannabe entrepreneurs. These days, almost all professionals have a LinkedIn page […]
Influential Childhood Books
These two books were probably the most influential books I read as a child. The first, “Animals of Farthing Wood” by Colin […]
Otter Sprainting on Camera
This footage almost feels like it needs a caption competition to go with it. The otter comes in, spraints right in front […]
Wader Wednesday – Oystercatcher Courtship Display
Cold weather and snow might stop ground nesting birds like waders from actually nesting but it doesn’t necessarily mean they will wait […]
Urban Foxes
Foxes were once thought of as a mammal of the countryside. However, in the last few decades their numbers have been increasing […]
Wader Wednesday – Lapwings
The lapwing (Vanellus vanellus), once a common sight across the UK, but now in decline and UK red-listed. Initial declines were due […]
Winter Plumage Greenshank and Redshank
Getting the chance to compare winter plumage greenshank and redshank together at the same time was a nice treat today. Its not […]
Winter in Norfolk
Had the opportunity to spend a few days in Norfolk during December, which meant a spot of birding and visiting some of […]
Otter in the Snow
Otters are equally happy in the snow as they are in the water it would appear, if these videos are anything to […]
Urban Peregrines
At one time you would have to travel to the uplands of the north or find a rocky sea cliff to see […]
Autumn at Musselburgh
Musselburgh also known as Levenhill Lagoons is one of my favourite places to go in the central belt. Positioned just outside Edinburgh […]
7 Tips for Graduate Ecologists
I am often asked how do you get started in ecology and how do I stand out from the crowd. I have […]
Cattle Egrets – Somerset
Nice to see cattle egrets doing their thing while I was down in England last week. It wasn’t that many years ago […]
Migrant Hawker
One of the things I miss up in Shetland is the number of invertebrates such as butterflies, moths and dragonflies that I […]
Wheatear – Shetland
Shetland is famous for its passage migrants and rarities. At the moment there are good numbers of wheatear around (some will be […]
Shetland Bumblebee
The ‘Shetland’ bumblebee (Bombus muscorum) are found between May and October in a variety of habitats but most commonly around roadside verges […]
Otters
Otters just seem to have a great time. I have recently been camera trapping and filming them under licence in Shetland and […]
Wader Nests
One of the best bits of my job is looking for and monitoring nests. The site I am on currently has lots […]
Great Northern Diver – Shetland
A post-work evening walk down at Minn beach last night produced a surprise of two summer plumage Great Northern Divers (Gavia immer) […]
Oystercatcher Eggs Hatching
Today was one of those days where I just couldn’t believe my luck. I was out checking the ground-nesting birds and their […]
Upland Rover – Breeding Bird Survey
While I’m working in Shetland I’ve been using some of my spare time to carry out volunteer bird surveys to contribute to […]
Starling Nest in Machinery
To you or me this might look like the vent pipe on an excavator. To a cavity-nesting bird like a starling, it […]
Bird Survey – Glen Coe
Yesterday I was out near Glen Coe carrying out my last wintering bird survey of the year. There weren’t too many birds […]
Winter Waders – Embo
One of my favourite winter birding trips is a visit to the coast at Embo, near Dornoch. The beach is always a […]
White-tailed Eagle – Highlands
Today started off as a normal day at work. Off up to a wind farm site near Inverness to carry out water […]
Diver Survey – Wester Ross
This week I have been carrying out diver surveys under licence in Wester Ross. It has meant some early starts to try […]
Mountain Hare – Highlands
Carrying out a wader and raptor survey on a wind farm site today and it’s been hot. Got some really good views […]
Red-breasted Carrion Beetle
Walking in Glen Feshie the other day and came across this funky looking beetle. It is a red-breasted carrion beetle (Oiceoptoma thoracicum). […]
Bogbean
One of my favourite plants that I encounter in the uplands is the bogbean (Menyanthes trifoliata). The name doesn’t do the plant justice […]
Cowslip
The cowslip (Primula veris) was once a common site across meadows and pastures. Sadly, it’s numbers have declined due to intensification of […]
Mountain Hare in Winter – Highlands
Mountain hares are one of the few UK mammal species that change their coat in winter. This one was hiding in the […]
White-winged Gulls – Mallaig
The north of Scotland seems to do well for white-winged gulls, especially in winter. A recent trip to Mallaig gave the opportunity […]
A day at the office – ecology style
If someone said they were spending a “day at the office”, it would probably conjure up thoughts of desks, open plan seating […]
Pine Grosbeak – Norway
One of the joys of being in a foreign country is that you never quite know what wildlife you might encounter. Walking […]
Garganey – Somerset
Me and garganey (Anas querquedula) don’t have the best of relationships. They are often described as secretive and are scare summer visitors […]
Lesser Yellowlegs – Skye
A trip over to Skye yesterday, which is always a nice place to visit. The bonus was we caught up with the […]
Snow Frog – Highlands
I was out undertaking a site walkover survey today in the Scottish Highlands not far from Carrbridge. The weather is OK but […]
Black Grouse Survey – Highlands
An early start to carry out a black grouse (Tetrao tetrix) lek survey today. These guys just make me laugh, when its […]
Snow Stop – Highlands
Normally construction sites carry on working throughout most weather. Today was an exception though as we got a fair dump of snow […]
American Wigeon – Inverness
This american wigeon (Mareca americana) is probably the closest rarity to my house that I have ever seen. A five minute walk […]
Tawny Owl Chick Branching
It was a nice evening last night, so we went for a walk along the Speyside Way near the house. It is […]
Monarch Butterflies – Pacific Grove, California
What an amazing day today was. I never thought I would see a monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) in the wild. Today I […]
Heermann’s Gull – Monterey Bay, California
If there was a beauty competition to find the best looking gull in the world, then I think the Heermann’s gull (Larus […]
Sea Otters – Monterey Bay, California
When I knew I was going to be visiting California, I was keen to try and see the southern sea otters that […]
Oban Otters
I’m off to Mull to carry out a walkover survey later this week so we’ve had an afternoon and evening to spend […]
Dalmatian Pelican – Gwithian, Cornwall
A Dalmatian Pelican (Pelecanus crispus) turned up in Cornwall in May 2016, when it was first seen over St Gothian Sands, Gwithian, […]
Alpine Chough – Spain
The alpine chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus), also known as the yellow-billed chough is a striking looking bird native to the high mountains of […]
Icterine Warbler – Laggan, Cairngorms
The middle of the Cairngorm National Park in June might not be the first place you’d think of to look for migrant […]
Camping near Lochgilphead, Argyll
I’m currently spending a few days down in Argyll carrying out bird surveys. Rather than stay in one of the local hotels […]
Osprey – Ythan
Today was a rare day off during survey season so I took the opportunity to head up the A90 to the Ythan […]
Ring Ouzel- WWT London Wetlands Centre
I was down in London yesterday attending the Wader Quest trustee meeting at the WWT London Wetland Centre in Barnes. I was […]
Weasel – Norfolk
Out on The Wash floodbanks yesterday carrying out an ecological watching brief in my role as ECoW for an unexploded ordnance survey […]
Ring-necked Duck – Pitlochry
Sometimes rarities turn up in the strangest of places. Take for example, this ring-necked duck which is on a small lochan at […]
Hoopoe – Hinksford
Rarities often turn up in nice coastal locations which sort of makes sense. Rare gulls can turn up in many different less […]
Penduline Tit – Horsebere Pools
A small group of penduline tits appeared in the most unassuming patch of water near a Premier Inn next to a roadside […]
Great Grey Shrike – Crabtree Hill, Forest of Dean
Great grey shrikes (Lanius excubitor) are a winter visitor to the UK. I’ve seen them in several places such as Gibraltar Point […]
White-tailed Eagle – Perthshire
Sometimes you see something and wish you had your camera to capture it. Other times you have your camera but can’t manage […]
Butterflies Topping Out
On a recent trip to Spain it was interesting to note how many butterflies there were near the tops of hills and […]
Violet Carpenter Bee – Spain
The Violet Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa violacea), is the common European species of carpenter bee, and one of the largest bees in Europe. […]
Angry Owl
There’s a bit of a joke amongst birders that the smaller an owl is the angrier it will look. This little owl […]
Eaton Woods – Nottinghamshire
I grew up in North Nottinghamshire and used to spend a lot of time as a child exploring the local woodlands. Whenever […]
Blue Tit – Nesting Behaviour
Saw some interesting behaviour today. This blue tit was clearly nest prospecting and had decided to utilise this house martin next on […]
Black Redstart – Brean, Somerset
The black redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros) is a robin-sized bird that has adapted to live in urban and industrial areas from its original […]