June 2023

Loch Morie is full of surprises this year; as we enter June we have eight Whooper swans forming an impressive flotilla on choppy waters.

On land, the red deer are coming out of winter with shaggy coats, but having shed last year's antlers they are growing new ones with their protective velvet covering.

Photo: M Rudzinska

Photo: S Thompson

June 2022

The magnificent and powerful osprey is a fish-eating bird of prey, with a wingspan typically reaching 1.8 metres. After wintering in West Africa, ospreys return to Scotland in the spring to breed and rear their young.

Photos: H Stefankova

June 2021

Throughout spring at Kildermorie, competing cuckoos have filled the air with their distinctive song. These images were caught on a field camera, set up after one cuckoo was seen returning repeatedly to the same fence.

Cuckoos are summer visitors and well-known as brood parasites, laying their eggs in the nests of other birds.

The cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) is on the RSPB 'red' list with a severe population decline in the UK - reported to be at least 50% over the last 25 years.

As we enter the month of June, we are fortunate that these attractive birds are still providing vocal entertainment.

June 2020

Glorious golden gorse lines Strathrusdale en route to Kildermorie. Newborn lambs with their pristine white coats add to the feeling that nature is a great lifter of spirits.

The exceptionally warm weather sees the deer and their calves moving to higher ground to enjoy cooler temperatures. Dominating wildlife activity on the lower ground are the birds, constantly gathering worms and insects to feed their offspring; the demands of ravenous swallow chicks, carefully housed under an overhanging roof, keep the adult birds fully occupied.

This otter was photographed in the River Glasa just below Meall Mor Lodge. These elusive aquatic hunters are generally active at dawn and dusk in freshwater lochs and rivers.

Photo: H Stefankova

June 2019

Mid-June offers the perfect opportunity to observe fledgling birds of various species. The juveniles pictured below are the pied wagtail, resident in Britain, and a summer visitor, the redstart.

Photos: H Stefankova

From late May to early July, newborn calves can be observed taking their first tentative steps, closely chaperoned by their mothers. Sika calves are generally the first to be observed, the sika hind gestation period being slightly shorter than that of the red hind.

Photo: H Stefankova

Also caught on camera near the Estate Office is a great spotted woodpecker, exhibiting its striking plumage and distinctive 'drumming' sound as it clings to the trunk of an old tree.

Photo: A I Mackenzie

June 2018

The glorious weather experienced at Kildermorie during May seems set to continue into June - an ideal time for families with young children to enjoy playing in the rock pools and exploring the estate's natural resources.

It is also the time when newborn calves can be found, curled up against a protective wall, gaining strength before they can follow their mother and join the herd.

June 2016

Care is advisable when moving around the estate this month, especially for those with keen powers of observation. When the hinds have given birth, they sometimes leave their calves against the wall of a building or in some other protected area. For the first few days a hind will just visit to feed her calf, only allowing it to follow her and join the herd when it has developed strength in its legs. It is a privilege to see these vulnerable new-borns.

June 2015

The small inland lochs provide prime nursery habitat for the mallard. This year's resident female had ten ducklings, and in their first few days they stayed close to their mother. [see photos below]

However once they became more adventurous the predators moved in, and at the beginning of June just one offspring remains.

Photos: J Smith

June 2014

Early morning tranquillity on Loch Morie.

Observing general wildlife at this time of year is both fascinating and rewarding. An oyster catcher is a ground-nesting bird and normally lays eggs in a 'scrape' in rough or uneven ground and often in the most unsuitable locations such as at the edge of a busy driveway. Very unusually an oyster catcher's eggs have been observed in a tree at the point where the trunk splits into four branches, ten feet above the ground.

At least five mallard have been successful in hatching and rearing ducklings; the largest group of eleven now take regular exercise on one of the lawns.

The heron patiently waits in the early mornings at the edge of a small loch.