Argyll - Ardnamurchan Peninsula
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Dominic Couzens (Regular BBC Wildlife Magazine contributor) recently said "Birders would have a hard time answering the question: "what is the best place for birds in Britain?" But, for mammals at least, there seems to be a generally accepted answer: the Ardnamurchan peninsula on the west coast of Scotland"
The reasons for this are many, but the remoteness of the region and the mix of hills, moors, forests and some of the richest coastal waters in Europe for cetaceans makes the Ardnamurchan peninsula a hotbed of mammalian activity.
THE WILDLIFE OF ARDNAMURCHAN PENINSULA
You are almost guaranteed to see red deer, particularly in the morning and evening. In summer you get to see the calves and in the autumn stags roar and rut as they compete for mating rights.
There's also a chance you'll see roe deer, foxes and badgers. Otters can be seen hunting for a seafood breakfast along the coast and pine martins can sometimes be seen, particularly if they are lured out with jam.
Killer whales, bottlenose dolphins, common dolphins, harbour porpoises and minke whales are the most common species of cetacean, but others do get spotted too. Basking sharks and the weird and wonderful sunfish (OK I know they're not mammals) can also be seen here. When I went whale watching here I went with these people www.whalewatchingtrips.co.uk/ and found them to be extremely good. Since we saw no whales or dolphins they gave us a freebie for the next day and gave us advice on where to spot sea eagles.
BIRDS OF ARDNAMURCHAN PENINSULA
White tailed sea eagles and golden eagles are common here - I saw both, although I saw the sea eagles a 10 minute drive from Tobermory on the Isle of Mull. Unfortunately I can't remember where exactly. You can also see buzzard, hen harrier, peregrine, sparrowhawk, kestrel and merlin.
Corncrakes can often be heard making their repetitive, croaking call in the fields.
Here are some useful tips for spotting birds on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula: www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/scotland/ardnamurchan/ardnamurchan-june-05.htm
The reasons for this are many, but the remoteness of the region and the mix of hills, moors, forests and some of the richest coastal waters in Europe for cetaceans makes the Ardnamurchan peninsula a hotbed of mammalian activity.
THE WILDLIFE OF ARDNAMURCHAN PENINSULA
You are almost guaranteed to see red deer, particularly in the morning and evening. In summer you get to see the calves and in the autumn stags roar and rut as they compete for mating rights.
There's also a chance you'll see roe deer, foxes and badgers. Otters can be seen hunting for a seafood breakfast along the coast and pine martins can sometimes be seen, particularly if they are lured out with jam.
Killer whales, bottlenose dolphins, common dolphins, harbour porpoises and minke whales are the most common species of cetacean, but others do get spotted too. Basking sharks and the weird and wonderful sunfish (OK I know they're not mammals) can also be seen here. When I went whale watching here I went with these people www.whalewatchingtrips.co.uk/ and found them to be extremely good. Since we saw no whales or dolphins they gave us a freebie for the next day and gave us advice on where to spot sea eagles.
BIRDS OF ARDNAMURCHAN PENINSULA
White tailed sea eagles and golden eagles are common here - I saw both, although I saw the sea eagles a 10 minute drive from Tobermory on the Isle of Mull. Unfortunately I can't remember where exactly. You can also see buzzard, hen harrier, peregrine, sparrowhawk, kestrel and merlin.
Corncrakes can often be heard making their repetitive, croaking call in the fields.
Here are some useful tips for spotting birds on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula: www.birdtours.co.uk/tripreports/scotland/ardnamurchan/ardnamurchan-june-05.htm
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Comments
By Bert Patient: I managed to spend a few days at Ardnamuchan and it is the ideal place for photos not just wild life i got some great shots of the sun setting due to it being the most westerly point in the UK Sanna Bay beach was also a good place to photographs well done Dan