A prolonged, moaning bark rung out from the glen slopes for the birth of a Red Deer calf was not far away. That sound of lonely pain fired up memories of the dead hind that I found in the same area a few years ago; alas the poor hind suffered a breech delivery with the calf well and truly stuck, only hind legs protruding. This sheltered area of the glen with rocky nooks and grassy bays seems to be favoured by pregnant hinds to birth their calves away from the main deer herds foraging the high plateau above and, sure enough, I spy a hind with her calf in faltering attendance, legs all a wobble.
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| Sketching today 4/6/23 |
Red Deer calves are all ears, have a dark dorsal stripe bordered by buff spots and are left at times by the mothering hinds in a secluded location where they employ their markings as static camouflage, there they stay motionless until the grazing hind returns. Early June is the traditional time for calving but I have seen small calves following hinds at the end of July. In this Scottish glen, deer stalking forms a large part of the estate's activity and that sport runs from July right through winter until February.
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| Red Deer hind and calf - pencil sketch 4/6/23 |
The consequences of a deer stalking economy is that the estate needs to maintain a decent head of beasts in order to deliver up a certain quantity of stags for shooting sport, as the best stags bring in premium fees. I understand that a herd of 3000 may produce 100-150 sport stags per year but, unfortunately, the grazing demands of a large deer population can lead to poor tree regeneration, overgrazing erosion that causes discontinuous heather islands and, of course, tick vectoring that affects all wildlife including the Red Grouse which is another income source for shooting estates.
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| Golden Eagle 'Stripy' resident female 4/6/23 |
Today the Golden Eagles are soaring high, and watching. In this glen there is a multitude of nesting Curlew, Lapwing and Oystercatcher but I have found no evidence that eagles actively hunt those waders ..... in fact, the only thing that seems to bother them are Raven, Carrion Crow and Jackdaw when nests are attacked. Eagles have been known to take deer calves if they can out-manoeuvre the kick boxing hind but in this area I have observed sheep and deer carcasses that have been left untouched for months and am convinced that the local adult eagles are Red Grouse and Mountain Hare 'warm and wet prey' specialists.
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| Common Snipe juvenile 4/5623 |
Far above and outlined on the hill-top skyline is the herd of deer. Some gallop across the moor to join the herd as if chased by some unseen predator and, in a way, that is true for biting flies are beginning to take their toll on the pelage casting deer; ears flap and heads toss vigorously to defy the winged blood suckers but taking to their heels seems the only temporary solution. As I sketch I hear the soft buzz of a fly around my head and that buzz is the tell tale sign of the Twin-lobed Deer-fly, unlike the silent flight of the Notch-horned Cleg-fly. Deer also suffer from the Warble-fly that lays eggs on under belly and leg areas from hence the larvae bury into the flesh migrating through the body until pupating through the hide via warble lump vent holes.
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| Golden Eagle resident male 4/6/23 |
The glen approaches its mid-summer high; bright Bracken shoots thrust their way through cracked earth, and various wild flowers are beginning to bejewel the drab heath with colour, and every step taken is announced by the alarm call of the Stonechat, Curlew, Lapwing or Oystercatcher ..... the only peace seems to be heaven bound in eagle's flight and, as I stare in envy, a skulking deer hind barks at my intrusion, its coat is rough and staring as summer pelage replaces winter.
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| Lapwing defensive display 4/6/23 |
Today I find a predated juvenile bird, presumably a Ring Ouzel, and part of the breast has been eaten and the head removed. Head removal seems to be a characteristic of raptor table manners and I would reckon that in this area a Merlin falcon is to blame; I have found several bird kills like this in my garden where a Sparrowhawk hunts. Recently a monitored Hen Harrier was found on a moor with its head and ring leg missing which has been translated by the RSPB vets as having its head ripped off while still alive in a sickening act of persecution; have they never watched a hawk consume a prey bird (including intra-guild species like harriers) while it is still kicking and eyes blinking .....
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| Raptor predated Ring Ouzel juvenile (head missing) 4/6/23 |
Falcons tend to break the neck of prey outright as their beaks have a specialised tooth that enables this but that being absent in hawks they tend to catch and talon grasp prey until dead through puncture wounds. Either way, the reasons for head removal is unknown and, of the predated bird carcasses mentioned above, the head is usually missing from the piles of plucked feathers or guts. I do wonder therefore, did the RSPB vets conduct talon puncture examinations on the body of the harrier before they readily concluded that a grouse moor person beheaded the harrier in an act of barbaric persecution and how did that person catch the harrier in the first place ..... my bet would be on a Goshawk committing this 'crime'.
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| Adder female 4/6/23 |
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| Ring Ouzel male 4/6/23 |
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| Curlew 4/6/23 |
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| Oystercatcher 4/6/23 |
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| Meadow Pipit 4/6/23 |
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| Cuckoo Flower 4/6/23 |
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| Hieraceum sp. 4/6/23 |
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| Speedwell 4/6/23 |
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| Stitchwort 4/6/23 |
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| Milkwort 4/6/23 |
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| Butterwort 4/6/23 |
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| Heath Bedstraw 4/6/23 |
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| Lousewort 4/6/23 |
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| Chickweed Wintergreen 4/6/23 |
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| Mountain Hare 4/6/23 |
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| Common Buzzard 4/6/23 |
All text, photographs and sketch done on 4 June 2023 (unless dated otherwise) and subject to copyright - no reproduction.
If you are inspired to go out into the hills and glens of Scotland please leave it as you find it, respect the environment, do not litter or discard so called 'biodegradable' fruit and especially if you are a dog walker keep your beast on a lead and do not bag up its waste then chuck it by the wayside. I recently came across one black poo bag neatly hung on a tree branch for someone else to take home and also a bright blue one thrown in the moorland verge .... why?
Moorland birds like Lapwing, Curlew, Golden Plover, Dunlin, Dotterel, Snipe, Red and Black Grouse, Ptarmigan and many raptors nest on the ground, it is advisable to keep dogs on leads at all times especially when walking on the high plateaux of the Cairngorms during summer months.
Please be aware that it is illegal to disturb nesting eagles or other raptors and you may do so inadvertently in your journeys into the highlands. Observe protected species at a respectful distance usually from about 1000 metres and for short periods of time only.
No wildlife was unduly or knowingly disturbed by my presence or for the purposes of this web page other than what would be expected on a normal hill walk. Many geographic names and location recognizable photos have been omitted to prevent persecution or inquisitive disturbance to named species.
Canon camera 200D with optical zoom lens EFS 55-250mm used; please note that the zoom range ZR distance if given is calculated by OS map from subject location to camera.
