WINTER FULL OF WILDLIFE MAGIC
WHEN winter comes it’s a magical time to see Scotland’s wildlife, with majestic red deer, red squirrels, various bird species and more appearing against a glistening snowy backdrop.
Keep your eyes peeled for the elusive and agile pine marten. These creatures love woodland habitats and are mainly nocturnal, but if you’re quiet, you can hear their vocal, cat-like call. During the winter months, pine martens can be spotted scampering around the forests, where there is less vegetation for them to hide behind.
You might catch a glimpse of these lovely creatures in the Cairngorms National Park or witness them up close at the Highland Wildlife Park in Kingussie.
Winter is a time of migration for many species of birds as they escape the bitter temperatures.
Pink-footed geese are easy to spot at this time of year, as these small birds migrate from Iceland and boast a loud, and sometimes haunting, cry to announce their arrival. The best place to see these graceful creatures is the Montrose Basin in Angus, east coast estuaries, and the Solway Firth.
Why not come along to the Nest Box and Bird Feeder Workshops on February 18 at the Falls of Clyde Visitor Centre to make a bird feeder for your neighbourhood birds in time for spring?
Visit One of Scotland’s favourite animals, the red squirrel is the smaller cousin of the grey squirrel but boasts bigger, fluffier ears and tails with a stunning reddish-brown coat that stands out against the snowy landscape. Most commonly spotted in forests across the country, red squirrels can be seen all year round.
Don’t miss the colour-changing mountain hare, which transforms from a grey-brown colour in the warm weather to a pure white with black-tipped ears when the cold weather arrives.
This colour change helps them to blend into the snowy scenery and hide from their predators – making them trickier to spot. They are often seen bounding across the heathland in the Highlands, most visible in spring as the snow starts to melt.
Just like the mountain hare, ptarmigan, left, change their look to blend into their surroundings when the snow falls. In the summer, these plump birds feature grey, brown and black feathers but in the winter they change to a stark white with black eye patches, and are most commonly seen on the highest plateaus of the Highlands.
A much rarer sighting, but one to keep an eye out for, is the Scottish wildcat. These beauties look like chunkier tabbies but with rounder ears and fluffier, thicker tails. Their brown-patterned coats allow them to be more visible in the snowy weather and you may see them on the prowl in the forests and woodlands of the Highlands.
Try your hand at Christmas wreath making at the Gailes Marsh Wildlife Reserve in Ayrshire on December 17, or head to Palacerigg Country Park for the Cumbernauld Wildlife Watch Group, also on December 17.
On December 18, why not uncover the secrets of dragonflies at The Tryst in Pitlochry, during a talk from Ruary Mackenzie Dodds? Or visit the Scottish Maritime Institute in Argyll for a Wildlife of the Galapagos and Ecuador talk on December 21.