Scotland’s wildest creatures
The northern forests are places of myth and magic, as are the creatures that live there.
They pop, gurgle and wheeze...
TOWARDS THE NORTH of the Cairngorms National Park is a 4000 hectare nature reserve managed by the RSPB. Famous for its ospreys on Loch Garten, Abernethy includes 1200 hectares of Caledonian pine forest – a precious fragment of what once would have been a country-wide woodland dominated by native Scots pine trees. And it’s home to some very surprising wildlife.
You might be lucky enough to see red or roe deer, or the comings and goings of the cheekily-cute red squirrels, high in those characterful pine trees. Pine martens thrive here and that’s why the squirrels stay in the outermost branches, safely away from this predator. The martens are shy and largely nocturnal, as is the Scottish wildcat, the last surviving native feline in Britain. Looks-wise they’re more beefedup tabbies than lions, and most active on still, moonlit nights: you’re more likely to spot their scat, or glimpse them in your headlights as you drive home through the forest after a day’s walking, than meet martens or wildcats face to face.
Birds are everywhere. As well as osprey, there are golden eagles, and white-tailed eagles have recently moved into the area, while Scottish crossbills and crested tits are both specialists of this rare habitat. But it’s the elusive capercaillie that’s the true curiosity. This is the largest grouse species in the world and males can weigh up to 5kg, with striking plumage in glossy black, brown and green, with a flash of scarlet around the eye. In spring, they burst into the bizarrest song – clicks, drum rolls, loud popping, gurgling, wheezing – which lures both rivals and females to a display arena known as a lek.
Here the males will strut about with chest puffed, tail up and fanned, before flutter-dancing and then fighting each other. The victor gets to mate with the watching females, the loser can die of exhaustion or injury, and the buff-coloured female, half the weight of the male, then incubates her eggs in a nest on the ground, vulnerable to those pine martens.
The capercaillie’s fortunes have been as dramatic as its mating ritual and in the 18th century they became extinct in Britain. Birds were successfully reintroduced from Sweden the following century, but numbers are again so low they face dying out here a second time. The lek is a particularly vulnerable time and you should never walk near one (for your own safety too), but the RSPB provides viewing opportunities at Abernethy (see below) or you can see a film of the extraordinary display at cairngormscapercaillie.scot/capercaillie/
These wild woods have an interesting, and possibly controversial, future. Research is going ahead into the feasibility of reintroducing the lynx, Europe’s largest wild cat, here – a species last seen in Britain over a thousand years ago. As a top predator it’s key to a natural balance of the ecosystem, but farmers of course worry for their livestock. One day though, Britain’s wildlife may be even more fascinating than it is at the moment. These are exciting times for Abernethy Forest.
WALK HERE: Download a free route guide for Abernethy Forest at lfto.com/bonusroutes MORE INFO: See rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/ wildlife-guides/birdwatching/watchingendangered-grouse/ or phone 01479 821409.