Goose Feast

The one bonus of thousands of Geese on Islay in winter is that there are always sick and injured birds available for Islays raptors. The commonest of these is the Buzzard as shown in this weeks blog photo. This winter there are good numbers of juvenile Sea Eagles on Islay with some of these coming down from Mull and across from Jura to join in the Goose feast. However, there may be a down side to this food supply as recent X-rays of Geese caught for ringing has shown that more than a fifth are carrying lead shot. Long term the results of continually injesting Goose flesh laced with lead shot could be disastrous for the young Sea Eagles.
This weeks gallery also includes photos of what makes Islay so special in Winter. More to follow next week. click here