31st July 2018
Alongside tours at Craignure and Tiroran, Mull Eagle Watch is now running tours at the West Ardhu eagle watch at Dervaig, owned by North West Mull Community Woodland Company.
We return to Hope and Star, the pair we watched here last year. They have successfully raised and fledged two chicks again, which are now 14 weeks old, and we’ve been seeing lots of action even in our first week here!
The two chicks in the nest
The more confident chick is taking short flights along the treeline and exploring the vast range of perching spots whilst the other remains close to the nest.
Chick flying
We’ve seen Hope bringing in what looks like a shag for the now adult-sized chicks to tuck into whilst Star brought back what looked like a measly lump of meat for them to fight over.
Hope bringing a bird back to the nest
And there is an immature white-tailed eagle which keeps making an appearance, often to be shooed off by Hope and Star. But an extra eagle never hurts on tours!
We’re also seeing buzzards mobbing the eagles, sparrowhawks whizzing around clutching prey, plenty of kestrels chasing each other, a few great-spotted woodpeckers and lots of siskins on the feeders.
Buzzard at West Ardhu
A juvenile great-spotted woodpecker at the feeders
Siskins at the feeders
Even though our chicks have fledged, they'll be hanging around for a while yet and we'll be running tours until the end of September.
Our family/dog-friendly tours are running at 11am and 2pm Sunday-Friday at North West Mull Community Woodland Company Eagle Watch.
Prices: Adults, £10 (Including RSPB members) and Children, £5. Family of four is £25. Locals go free.
At Craignure Golf Club, we are running a coastal wildlife watch where we are seeing eagles, breeding terns, waders, seals and even the odd otter! This site is ideal for daytrippers.
Booking is recommended and is done through the VisitScotland Craignure iCentre in person or on 01680 812 556/377. And please inform of any mobility issues.
Thanks for reading,
Meryl
RSPB Eagle Ranger