Awaiting The Geese
Blogs
Montrose Basin has now entered that unclear divide between seasons: the swifts have already departed for Africa, and our common terns are definitely gathering together in preparation for their journey …
What fledgling am I seeing in my garden?
Blogs
Summer is officially here, and for the past few weeks we’ve been enjoying seeing a whole variety of recently fledged birds around the visitor centre. So many, in fact, that …
A Bittersweet Spring Equinox
Blogs
The Spring equinox is on March 20th, and the arrival of this new season is both exciting and bittersweet. The emphasis is perhaps more on ‘bittersweet’ this year, with lockdown …
Wildlife We May Have Missed
Blogs
It’s almost been an entire year since the world came to a halt. The UK’s first lockdown came into effect on March 16th 2020, but the visitor centres had already …
What’s the rarest bird we’ve seen at Montrose Basin?
Blogs
It’s a question we’re often asked at Montrose Basin Visitor Centre and not one that’s easy to answer – it’s affected by the passage of time, the location, and seasons. …
Montrose Magpies – a wildlife perspective
Blogs
The magpies of Montrose have always been a bit of a mystery – despite being widespread across the UK, it was only recently that we started recording them on the …
Why do we call them ‘skeins’ of geese?
Blogs
The autumn equinox has just passed, but the unmistakable ‘heralds of autumn’ were making their voices heard well before that. People across Scotland heard their first pink-footed geese of the …
The re-opening of our visitor centres
Blogs
The journey towards re-opening was a challenging – but rewarding – one for the visitor centre teams across Scotland. It took a huge amount of planning from people all across …
Dog-walking in wildlife (or not!) – leave only pawprints
Blogs
One of our Teacher Naturalists at Montrose Basin is also a dog owner and dog-walker. Read on for advice from Kim on how to be a responsible dog walker at …
How does a kingfisher build its nest?
Blogs
In this time of drastic change, there’s some comfort to be found in the constant of nature. The worldwide event we’re currently all experiencing has affected every facet of life, …