Wednesday 5th October

We were recently at the highland wildlife park with the group of children from nature club. Although it rained all day they all still had a great time looking and learning about all the different animals and then playing in the park after they spent all their pennies in the shop. The animals were quite active despite the weather and we had a close up look at the polar bear whilst it was being fed. The tigers and wolves were walking about and came right up the edge of the fence so we were able to admire these beautiful creatures at close range. The pine marten was also pacing about its enclosure, the wildcats were running about and the capercaillie was perched in a tree examining its surroundings. It was really nice to get up close and personal with some of Scotland’s native species.



Watching the polar bear feed



Looking at the tigers



Thursday 29 September

We are in the process of replacing all the waymarkers on our waymarked trails. Many of the posts are originals from when the trails were set up in 1996, so have done well to last 15 years. Today pupils from Pitlochry High School Rural Skills class gave us a hand on the Red Squirrel Trail. They realised it can be quite hard work digging a hole!

Thursday 22 September



Autumn colours in Glen Tilt


The equinox has been, nights are now longer than days, and autumn has definitely arrived in Blair Atholl. Although many people might suggest that we haven't had a summer anyway, the trees have now started to turn, leaves are falling, and the nights are definitely getting chilly. Give it a couple more weeks and the autumn colours should be looking really spectacular.

The squirrels definitely think it's autumn too, collecting and stashing food for the winter. Although they don't hibernate, they spend a lot more time in their dreys in the winter and don't go out at all on bad weather days. They stash food now so that in the middle of winter it's easy and quick to gather it and then they can quickly get back to the warmth of the drey.


Off to get the next nut

Stashing nuts amongst the vegetation

Sitting in the wildlife hide this morning, I watched a busy squirrel at work. It collected a nut, bit the top off - perhaps to give it a scent for finding it later, and then buried it amongst the vegetation. This went on for about 20 minutes before the squirrel decided maybe it could have a reward and ate one of the nuts. Meanwhile the coal tits were busy taking sunflower seeds that had been spilled by the squirrel.

Friday 16 September

Busy squirrels.

Our resident red squirrels always love the peanut/ hazelnut / sunflower seed mix we put in our squirrel feeders out in the woods. However, they are emptying them slightly less quickly than usual just now, as the beech trees are providing an alternative feast. Standing under some of the big mature trees it is very difficult to see the squirrels because there are so many beech leaves, but you can hear the pop of the nuts being opened by the squirrel and then the rustles and plops as the husks are tossed away. Beech trees only have good 'mast ' years every few years, but when they do it's a great time for the squirrels to feed up.

Young squirrel enjoying one of our feeders.

 



Beech nut shells discarded by squirrels.

 The only downside is that it benefits the grey squirrels a lot too, and makes them more likely to spread out into this area. In fact one was recently spotted by a resident at Fenderbridge. If you see a grey squirrel in the Blair Atholl / Calvine / Struan area then please let us know as soon as possible.

Thursday 8th September

We have recently made improvements to one of our access points on the Glen Banvie trail. Where there used to be a boardwalk and steps over the deer fence (in the middle on the trail) we have now installed a gate to make access much easier, especially with bikes. On the way back from removing the boardwalk we spotted a black grouse standing on the moorland relaxing in the sun. It was a nice sight watching it in the middle of purple heather. 

New gate on the right

The Scottish thistles have begun to set seed now on the path to Loch Ordie with only a few flowering plants still about which are still a good source of food for insects, including this peacock butterfly. The thistle was taken on as the Scottish emblem during the reign of Alexander III because, as the legend goes, King Hakton of Norway ordered his army of men to invade Scotland, landing in Coast of Largs. They intended on taking the Scots by surprise by removing their shoes so they didn’t make a sound and creeping up on them during the night. Unfortunately one of the men stood on a thistle, yelped out and alerted the Scottish helmsmen of the invasion which led to the Scots winning the battle.

Peacock butterfly on a Scottish thistle

We have found yet another mink footprint but this time at Cally Loch so we are doing the best we can to try and trap it in an effort to protect and save our native water voles and stop the spread of American mink.

We recently had our advanced fungi day and saw over thirty species of fungi on a very small section of the red squirrel trail. There were loads of orange birch boletes and russulas but we also found a fly agaric and honey fungus, also called bootlace fungus. Honey fungus is a gardeners and foresters nightmare. There are seven different species in the UK and they are all parasitic, killing trees quickly by attacking tree roots and decaying dead wood. You may see honey coloured mushrooms on the tree or at its base for short periods in the year but it can also be distinguished by black coloured ‘bootlaces’ which are found growing under the bark. Not all fungi are bad though and only a small number are actually parasitic. Many have a symbiotic relationship with their plant counterparts helping both parties to grow and survive and some fungi are very important for recycling dead material. It is a great time of year to go out and have a look at them so see how many species you can find. You will be surprised at how many you can get in a small area.

Fly Agaric

Honey Fungus

Honey Fungus on birch

Sunday 28th August

Our resident red deer stag has finally shed all the velvet off his antlers now that it is getting close to the rutting season. The velvet supplies oxygen and nutrients to the antler to help it grow and since the antler is the fastest growing mammal bone it needs a lot of nutrients. Once it has reached its full size the velvet is no longer required so it dies and falls off leaving the dead bone. This also means that there are no longer nerves around the antlers so the stags can use them for displays and fights in order to get mates. We have had the same resident stag here at the castle for quite a few years now and he is getting quite old which you can tell from the size of his antlers. You cannot actually tell the age of a stag but counting the number of points on its antlers as size is also determined by the deer’s nutrition and health due to the vast nutrient requirements needed in growing antlers.
                     
The rut itself will start at the end of September and will last until about November at which point the stags will be competing with each other for mates and guarding groups of females called a harem. During this time males will size each other up to assess dominance and will challenge a harem holder by roaring repeatedly for up to 20 minutes. If the stag is out roared he will back down but if there is no clear winner then it will lead onto a battle to determine the dominant male. When this happens the males will walk in parallel with each other until one lowers its head inviting the other to charge. They will fight and push each other until one submits and the winner will gain the breeding rights until challenged again. This can often lead to injuries and fatalities and in some cases their antlers can become locked together and then both will starve to death as they cannot feed or drink like this. Our resident male has a whole harem to himself so will not have to worry about competing to breed but in the hills you should be able to hear the stags roaring at each other in the following month but don’t get too close as they can be very dangerous during this time.

Thursday 25th August

The wet weather we have been having this summer has been very helpful for the salmon as their journey upstream to breed has been made a lot easier with the higher water levels.  The salmon can be seen jumping on the River Tilt as they make their way back to the stream in which they were born.  It is still uncertain how the salmon manage to navigate back to their natal site and many suggestions have been made including rivers having certain smells which the salmon use to find their way back or that they are able to detect the earth’s magnetic fields and use that as a guide.  After they breed the salmon will die leaving their offspring to fend for themselves and start the cycle again. 

Also on the river we have come across some mink tracks on one of our rafts.  These rafts contain a tunnel inside of which there is a basket filled with clay.  When a mink or other water dwelling animal comes to investigate the raft it will leave a footprint impression on the clay which can then be identified.  American mink are a real problem for our native water vole species as they predate heavily on them.  Water voles normally evade predators by diving under water and using submerged entrances to get into their burrows but these strategies do not work with are non-native mink as they are very good, fast swimmers.   This, as well as pollution and habitat change has resulted in a drastic decline in water voles which has led to them being classified as a protected species.  Mink resemble polecats and ferrets but can be distinguished due to them being one colour all over unlike the latter.  There is currently a large scale conservation effort to try and stop the spread of American mink to help save our water voles so if you spot one then please get in touch with either us or your local mink officer. 

American Mink

Water Vole

Tonight we have out batty kids events where we will be playing games to learn about bats and then going on a walk with the bat detectors to see what we can spot and hear.  This event starts at 7:30 and lasts until 9 pm meeting at the Ranger Information Centre and costs £2 per child. 

On Sunday the 28th August we also have a fungi course for beginners where you can come along and learn the basics about fungi and how to identify them. There really is a lot more to fungi than meets the eye so come along and learn about this very interesting kingdom. The following week (4th Sept) we have a more advanced fungi event where you can come out and improve your knowledge of fungi with our expert. These both start at 2 pm at Glen Tilt car park and cost £2 and £4 respectively per person.