A previous Hebrides blog post talked about all the sightings we had on a 1 day tour with Steve Duffield, the local wildlife guide for the Outer Hebrides. This post will talk about everything else I saw and did, as I was on the islands for a full week. Now, if you are not one for reading blog posts, then I captured a lot of it on video, and have made a little soundscape which I have posted below. On my first few days on the islands, I realised how jaw droppingly beautiful these islands are, and, since I had all my camera gear with me, made the last minute decision to capture anything I could on video. I decided to do most of the filming at 100 frames per second, as this enables you to play the video back in slow motion, which I thought was very apt for this place. It is a super laid back and relaxing place and they do things at their own pace, so, slow-mo fitted the aesthetic perfectly. Here is the video:
Now, if reading wildlife blogs is your thing, then read on to hear about all the amazing wildlife that these islands have to offer. I went there in my camper with my girlfriend and daughter, and I decided to make base at Balranald campsite , as this was directly next to RSPB Balranald, one of their signature reserves. A great choice it was too as it was a superb site in a lovely location on the famous Machair, a distinctly Scottish habitat consisting of short grassy plains with lots of wild flowers, tended by the local crofters who make hay out of it and so on. The air was full of the sounds of spring ,as Corncrake rasped day and night, while Snipe were drumming over head at dusk and dawn. There was a very confiding Corncrake that had a territory behind the visitor centre that, unusually for this species, would walk around with no care if it was detected, and would even pose on a rock for photographers. Every day we would have passing White-tailed Eagle and Short-eared Owl over the site which caused quite a stir with the campers, as they were all predominately birders, a first for us!
The first evening a decided to walk down to the headland of the reserve with my long lens to try get close to some waders as I saw the light in the setting sun was superb. I wasn’t disappointed as I was able to get super close to some Sanderling and Dunlin, who were also not scared of people, presumably as a result of seeing so many visitors to the reserve. Here are the results.
Light is everything with photography, and I am getting to the point where I am not even bothering taking photos if the light is no good. I also make use of good light while the sun is shining and took hundreds of photos. This evening was no different and I kept walking around seeing what would show up.
Great Black-backed Gull being mobbed by Common Gull
Arctic Tern
Ringed Plover
Arctic Terns
The next day, I went to a location where I had heard there were Ruff in breeding plumage. For anyone that doesn’t know, in spring, ruff transform out of their drab winter plumage into a very extravagant breeding plumage which includes a large collar of feathers around the neck and head (a ruff), which is presumably where 16th century English people got the idea from in their fancy clothes. The bird then gathers round a lek and displays to the females to try secure a mate. No two Ruff are ever the same and they come in a variety of colour combinations consisting of black, white and ginger. Fabulous looking birds! Anyway, I turned up and had a good look for them with no joy. It was still great birding and I came across fledgling skylarks, an oystercatcher nest and a Short-eared owl, that was, bizarrely, soaring really high in a buzzard like fashion.
In the early evenings I would have a drive down the famous ‘Committee Road’, a road that cuts from the coast on the north to the coast on the south, traversing high over the peat moors, and is especially good for raptors. My first few attempts were fruitless and I was beginning to wonder what all the fuss was about, then on my last attempt I had 5 male Hen Harriers and 4 Short-eared owls. At one point I had a harrier and an owl in the viewfinder at the same time. Too distant for a shot but it just showed how productive this road can be, and how rich in birdlife these islands are. In fact, I have never seen as many birds of prey in one place in the UK before. The amount of raptors on the Outer Hebrides is breathtaking. Here are a few shots of a male Hen flying through someones garden!
I spent the remainder of my free time gathering footage for the above video, but there was one last sighting that I was super happy about. I was regularly checking the Western Isles Wildlife website for recent sightings information, and there were repeated reports of the displaying ruff that I was talking about earlier. So on my very last morning I decided to have a last ditch attempt as I was passing the said area called Loch Sandaray. I drove down the narrow track and saw another birder who I had met on our campsite who was also after the ruff. He pointed over and boom! A male ruff displaying to a female on the lek. I was elated! I have been wanting to see this breeding plumage for a very long time! However, it was short lived, as a massive cow came charging down the road with the farmer and his dog chasing it. It flushed the Ruff and they flew but I managed a few shots.
And that was that, my time was up on the Uists and was bound for Barra where I was catching the 5 hour ferry to Oban, then embarking on a week trip to Mull.
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