Shaking Otter

Another week on Islay and this time better weather produced more photographic opportunities.

In the Sound of Islay I caught up with a dog Otter that was fishing for more than an hour. When it finally came ashore I was ready for the shake and also managed a few shots when it rested.

On another afternoon I encountered some feeding Chough and managed some individual and group shots of our rarest member of the crow family. In the past I have obtained video of Roebucks walking through the snowdrops but did not see any in the woods this year. You will have to make do with our two Golden Retrievers  instead . Click here for the photo plus other photos taken during the week.

Whilst our February visit this year has been windy and wet it has also been very mild so much so that we have watched two pair of Ravens building their nests and found a Rock Dove’s nest with one egg in. Still more surprising was the emergence of a Small Tortoiseshell butterfly on the 18th desperately searching out the mid-day sun.

On 19th February forty Black Guillemots were active in the Sound of Islay. A trip to Jura was disappointing and only produce a pair of Canada Geese, a multitude of which we can see any day on our local canal!