I'm just back from another fine trip to the Highlands, once again to deliver a
School of Birding - our eighth, and our first Module Two. All our lovely guests were known to us and therefore were willing crash test dummies for M2, which consisted of all new subject matter for our classroom sessions.
Whooper Swan
Module Two, then - a sideways step, and not an upward one, from Module One - involved sessions dedicated to Patch Birding, Song and Calls, eBird / Birdtrack, Finding Rare Birds and more (as well as one of my now-legendary quizzes - you'll have to come along to find out why), and our team seemed suitably inspired by them. Thus, with a few expected tweaks, Simon and I are feeling great about upcoming M2s throughout this year and beyond.
Spot the rapidly disappearing adult Glaucous Gull (it was close when we found it....!)
There were, of course, also five long and productive days in the field, in as many habitats and places as we could fit in without rushing too much; happily, despite less than ideal conditions, we enjoyed a long roll call of fine birds and wildlife against a backdrop of valleys, mountains, Caledonian pine forest, estuaries, seaside, marshland, heathland and more.
Red Squirrel
Eagles of both species were especially accommodating, but it was hard to pick a highlight among so many great experiences. The Crested Tits, meanwhile, were especially showy - see next post....
Long-tailed Duck (above), White-tailed Eagle (below)
Golden Eagle
Slavonian Grebe
Whoopers
Thanks to Annemarie for the excellent group shots!
