Scottish Nature Notes

We want to shine a light on the exceptional people and projects helping Scotland’s species and habitats. If you, either individually, as a group, as part of a partnership, or in a business, are going the extra mile to support nature or want to celebrate others doing great work, the Nature of Scotland Awards want to hear from you! Here's how to do it.

Spring in Scotland sees a whole new cast of characters arriving for us to get to know in nature. Migration is in full swing, and it’s time to dust off your ID guides, relearn your bird songs and step out to see who you can find. Here are six spring arrivals and our top tips for where to spot them.

Check out the results from Big Garden Birdwatch 2025!

The future of Coul Links, a beautiful and rare habitat in East Sutherland, is once again threatened with plans for an 18-hole golf course. With the recommendation from the public inquiry due to go to Scottish Ministers soon for a decision, discover why it's such an important place and where we are with this new fight.

Farming and crofting have a vital role to play in halting and reversing biodiversity loss in Scotland. In this second blog in our series on farming, Gabija Dragunaite, RSPB Scotland's Policy Assistant, and Andrew Midgley, Senior Land Use Policy Officer, emphasise this point by outlining some of the RSPB’s own farming activity.

You may have recently seen calls for gulls living in urban areas to be killed. In this blog, we’ll outline why we think this is wrong and what we think should happen instead.

Farming and crofting have a vital role to play in halting and reversing biodiversity loss in Scotland and one of our priorities is to try and work with farmers and the government so that we see a big increase in Nature Friendly Farming. In this blog, the first of a series on farming, Gabija Dragunaite kicks us off by providing some context as to why we think farming is so important.

RSPB Scotland volunteer, Eliza Ralph, shares what happened at the 'For the Love of Gulls' event, organised by the Wild Dundee project team.

Last week, the Scottish Government published its highly anticipated Natural Environment Bill. In this blog we ask the all-important question: is the Natural Environment Bill up to the task?

Last week we asked staff at RSPB Scotland to share their favourite seabirds and why they love them. This week, we’re hearing from RSPB colleagues across the UK to see which seabirds have captured their hearts, from Razorbills to Fulmars!

Gabrielle Flinn, a PhD Researcher at the University of York is investigating the role of Yellow Meadow Ants in the restoration of species-rich grasslands. Here she give us an insight into the work she carried out at RSPB Scotland Loch Leven nature reserve and Lochore Meadows last year.

Celebrating Seabirds: RSPB Scotland staff reveal their favourite seabird species.

Snowdrops are a familiar sign of spring to look out for in gardens, parks and woodlands, but there’s more to these dainty white flowers than meets the eye! Here are five facts you might not now about snowdrops.

A look back at how the Edinburgh Area Local Group (EALG) celebrated its 50th anniversary last year and a peek at some fantastic group photos from over the years.

Today is World Wetlands Day. But what exactly are wetlands, and just how important are they for nature in Scotland?

Tufted Ducks are one of the most stylish ducks to look out for in Scotland. Although they can be seen all year round, numbers increase in winter because of birds moving to the UK from Iceland and northern Europe so are easy to spot just now. Here are five facts to know about these black and white beauties.

This year, we’re celebrating 30 years of RSPB Scotland Forsinard Flows, our nature reserve in the heart of the Flow Country. Since establishing the reserve in 1995, we’ve achieved an incredible amount to restore and protect the blanket bog habitat in the North of Scotland. In this blog we share 30 achievements for each of the 30 incredible years at RSPB Scotland Forsinard Flows.

In this blog, we explore what is needed to allow the upcoming Natural Environment Bill to succeed in reversing the chronic decline of nature across Scotland.

RSPB Scotland Senior Species and Habitats Officer James Silvey reflects on our position following the illegal release of Lynx in the Cairngorms National Park last week.

The end of a year seems like a good time to pause and reflect on what we have achieved in the last spin around the sun. Because, although there is always more work to be done to protect nature, it’s important to look back and see what we’ve achieved together.

The Scottish Government has published the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy and its first Delivery Plan. Here's our initial reaction on where it succeeds, where it falls short, and what we will be calling for in the weeks ahead.

With a new National Park proposed in Galloway next year Area Manager Andrew Bielinski, who covers Dumfries and Galloway, looks at the current role of National Parks in Scotland and what they might look like in the future.

The 2024 UK Wildfire Conference was recently held in Aberdeen. RSPB’s David Douglas, Principal Conservation Scientist, and Neil Forbes, Ecologist, reflect on the event.

As the days get shorter and the weather gets colder, it's important to keep making time to get oudoors and connect with nature. In this blog RSPB Scotland Communications Officer, Ross, shares five of his favourite things about nature.

Ahead of the UK Wildfire Conference in Aberdeen next week, we’re looking at the main causes of wildfire and how the risk can be reduced through changes to public engagement, policy and land management.