Pheasant family.

The family of 7 pheasant chicks we first saw in June as little bundles of fluffy feathers have now grown. They still go round together as a family and we can now see there are 4 females and 3 males. Mother pheasant is always vigilant even though they are as big as her now. They strolled up the driveway yesterday and rummaged in the vegetation under the bird feeders. Mother stayed at the top of the driveway keeping an eye out for any possible danger. After a long while she gave a high pitched call and they all ran towards her, although there was one stubborn male lagging behind. Our guests staying in Aspenwood said they looked forward to the pheasants daily circular tour of the cottage each morning. The males are still a bit scruffy but in the next few months they will hopefully smarten their appearance if they want to attract the local girls.

Wildlife update.

The weather this last week has fortunately cooled down and we have been experiencing wet but warm days with one terrific thunderstorm thrown in. In spite of all this the wildlife still has to go in search of food.Seen a few red deer nibbling on the wet grassy bank at the front near lochside and not surprisingly they always hear any movement with their lovely huge ears. The pheasant family- mother plus 7 chicks - are often under the bird table pecking at any remains hurled from above. The birds, especially finches, are always hungry and cling to the sunflower feeders daily but disperse at breakneck speed when the lethal, but extremely agile, sparrowhawk zooms round looking for a meal. The new bird bath is a big hit with birds and squirrels especially in the recent hot weather. The great spotted woodpecker is a colourful visitor to the peanut feeders. The red squirrels and youngsters with their much thinner tails are always fascinating to watch as they scurry down the tree trunks in search of the nuts and sunflower hearts - in fact they will eat anything put out on or under the bird table. This adult squirrel took shelter from a rain shower in the nearby trees just outside our window where we now have honeysuckle growing for the first time.

That was the week that was.

A real start to the week with strong winds and driving rain. Quite a few trawlers chose to use the Great Glen route to avoid the choppy Pentland Firth and several ferry routes to the islands were cancelled due to the high winds. The Loch Ness Lifeboat has been seen out on training exercises. We were quite surprised to see 'The Lord of the Glens' cruise liner travel along Loch Ness towards Fort William. It glided silently past in the dusk of the late afternoon with a light shining from the front mast.
The wildlife has been abundant in the colder weather. The red squirrels have been daily feeders on the nuts.

In the morning the various birds wait in the nearby trees for their breakfast menu to appear and the tiny, but bold, coal tits fly round the table impatiently as I put out their favourite sunflower hearts. Male and female pheasants have been sauntering up the driveway and then hop over the small fence and disappear down the bank. Deer have suddenly emerged out of the bracken in the surrounding forest and munch on the leaves of the blueberry bushes.

Had snow flurries yesterday for most of the day and we woke up this morning to find it had laid on the high ground opposite. More is forecast for today all over the country with temperatures well below freezing tonight. Definite log fire and a few warming drams called for.