Sumer is icumen in
Although the summer solstice represents all the abundance and potential of summer, it is also a moment of stillness. The pause in the pendulum swing of the year as day length reaches its maximum and the night is just a…
Aigas Field Centre
Hope for Wildcats
This year has seen lots of hope for the return of wildcats (Felis silvestris) to Scotland. This is a species that, in 2019 was classed as functionally extinct in the UK. Wildcats are in this situation due to a combination…
Forever sightings
For any wildlife enthusiast your first sighting is something that will stay with you for a long time – sometimes forever. I knew my academic placement year would create a lot of fond memories but prior to arriving at Aigas…
Aigas: One of the best places to see pine martens (Martes martes) in the UK
One of Britain’s most elusive mammals, the pine marten (Martes martes) is highly secretive and found only in a couple of areas of the UK. Once widespread, the species has since declined drastically due mainly to habitat loss and heavy persecution…
Aigas Twinflower Project Update
The Twinflower (Linnaea borealis) is a rare plant in the UK, confined almost entirely to Pinewoods in the Scottish Highlands, where it exists at around 50 sites. Named for its dainty, symmetrical flowers, this beautiful little plant is said to…
It is Tough to be a Bee
Bees can be heard buzzing around flowers, such as those of willow in early spring and heathers throughout the summer. At Aigas, we have been delighted to see the first white-tailed bumblebees of the year over the last couple of…
Why Choose Aigas?
For the last forty-seven years, when the rest of the world was either destroying or marginalising nature, the little Aigas estate was busy rewilding. In those days it was called ‘restoration ecology’, a virtually unknown activity outside National Nature Reserves. In…
Wheels Up – Naturedays Outreach in North West Sutherland
As part of their 2023 outreach programme, the Naturedays team at Aigas visited three primary schools across North West Sutherland to run workshops on “Brilliant Birds” and “Marvellous Maps”. Sutherland is a remote area in the far north of Scotland,…
A Grey Matter
The days are finally starting to get longer and the weather isn’t as gloomy anymore. The daffodils are up in the Aigas garden, there is bud on the rowan and the mornings are loud with birdsong. Just last week, there…
Lepidoptera and Climate Change
As spring and summer have rolled around at Aigas we have seen the emergence of many species of moths and butterflies. The warmer weather has brought a surge of new moth species into our weekly moth traps, and bright sunny…
