The Famous Aigas Wildlife Week
Immerse yourself in the very best of Highland wildlife with our flagship programme. Each day you’ll explore a new habitat in small groups of up to ten, guided by our expert ranger team. After your adventures, relax in a cozy lodge nestled within the arboretum of the House of Aigas, keeping your eyes peeled for the red squirrels, treecreepers and woodpeckers that frequent the woodland right outside your door.
Highlights
- The chance to see a range of some of Scotland’s most iconic wildlife – from golden eagles to otters, crested tits to rare orchids
- Staying on the Aigas estate with private hides and the opportunity to see pine martens, badgers and more
- Expert guiding from our team of rangers who live and breathe Highland wildlife
- Opportunities to learn about various important conservation projects, including a visit to our wildcat breeding programme
What to Expect
Begin your week on the Aigas estate, learning about our ongoing conservation projects and meeting the wildlife that shares our home. Spot ospreys fishing on the loch, watch crossbills and red squirrels in the woodland, and discover our well-placed hides for quiet observation throughout your stay.
Venture into Glen Affric, the jewel of the Highlands, for a full day among ancient Scots pine woodland. Glen Affric changes with the seasons, and as such so will our target species. Spring brings wildflowers, breeding birds such as crested tits, and fritillaries emerging around the bracken. During the summer black-throated divers will breed on the lochs, perhaps with young in tow, dragonflies patrol clearings and lochans, whilst purple heathers carpet the forest floor. In the autumn leaves begin to change, wildflowers are replaced with a myriad of fungi, and the bellowing of red deer stags echoes from the hillsides.
A day on the Black Isle brings contrasting wildlife-watching opportunities, with a wealth of birdlife and the chance to see bottlenose dolphins on the Moray Firth. A trip to RSPB Udale Bay gives great birdwatching: waders such as oystercatchers, bar- and black-tailed godwit, curlew and redshank; flocks of pink-footed geese and wigeon in the spring and autumn; osprey fishing and female mergansers with creches of dozens of ducklings during the summer. You will also enjoy the charm of Cromarty village and can spot farmland birds like yellowhammers, linnets and grey partridges across the island.
The west coast is another great day for birdwatching, with our main target species being white-tailed eagles and all three species of divers, but the chance to look for great and Arctic skuas, auk species and perhaps a hen harrier. This is also a fantastic opportunity to learn about the geology of Scotland as we will pass through three main geological zones and be able to see the way that the landscape, and the wildlife assemblage, changes as we head further west.
We will contrast this by spending a day on the east coast, seeking seabirds such as gannets, eiders, shearwaters, common and velvet scoters. This is also a great place to spend some time looking out for seals, dolphins, porpoises and even the occasional minke whale or basking shark. This is a great day for botanists as well with seasonal highlights including twinflower, one-flowered wintergreen, bee and northern marsh orchids, and moonwort in the coastal pine woodlands and sand dune systems.
For early risers there will also be an opportunity to go on a morning drive in search of otters. Whilst they are famously elusive, there is a good chance of spotting otters as they follow the coastline, fishing for eels, flatfish and crabs. An early morning is also a wonderful opportunity to look for a whole host of species of birds: pintail, shelduck, and goosander are often spotted as well as a chance for fishing osprey.
Our final day will be spent in a nearby glen, where the main target species will be golden eagles. We will take our time scanning the horizons and have a look at a very impressive eagle eyrie which may have a fluffy eaglet perched on it during the summer. This is also an opportunity to watch cuckoos, red-throated divers and breeding whooper swans, as well as red deer up in the hills. As well as moorland species, we will also take a short detour to a local lochan in search of Slavonian grebes, perhaps one of Britain’s most stunning breeding birds.
Alongside daytime excursions, you’ll have the chance to spend an evening in one of our wildlife hides to observe pine martens and badgers, both frequent visitors. You’ll also learn about our wildcat breeding programme and visit a hide at one of our enclosures for a glimpse of Scotland’s rarest mammal.
During the course of the week, you will be based on the Aigas Estate, where so much wildlife is on your doorstep the entire week. Whilst you will be staying in cozy lodges in the house’s arboretum, you will also have access to our extensive natural history library and have meals in the magnificent baronial hall, where you’ll enjoy delicious three-course home-cooked meals each evening.
Extras
An exciting boat trip on the Moray Firth with hopes to see the bottlenose dolphins, other cetaceans, and sea birds close by for an additional cost of £30 per person. Please note that due to the health and safety on the RIB boat, this isn’t suitable for those who are immobile, pregnant or have a serious back condition.
For those who do not wish to join the boat trip, there will be time to explore a quaint historic coastal village.
