2011 was the year the Scottish Wildlife Trust went global. The Trust’s three wildlife webcams attracted over three million views last year.

The webcams are at the Trust’s Visitor Centres at Loch of the Lowes in Perthshire, Montrose Basin in Angus and the Falls of Clyde in North Lanarkshire.

The webcams have been streamed live onto the web with generous support from People’s Postcode Lottery. The Scottish Wildlife Trust is currently seeking a sponsor to help cover the extra costs associated with the huge increase in visitor numbers.

At least 75,000 people per month watched the webcams last year, and the cameras have fans from around the world including America, Australia and East Asia.

Viewers from 187 countries visited the webcams at www.scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk, including more than 90,000 from Finland. There were even 641 hits from Iraq!

At Loch of the Lowes, the webcam is perched on a nest, inhabited by a very special bird. The female osprey, known by fans as the Lady of the Loch, returned to Loch of the Lowes for the 21st consecutive year last March. Thousands of webcam viewers saw her up close as she laid eggs which unfortunately did not hatch. We hope that she and her mate will return this summer.

Click here to see the Loch of the Lowes webcam.

Thanks to the female osprey, the Trust’s website including the webcam at Loch of the Lowes, received a record 61,213 visits on one day in May last year.

At Montrose Basin viewers saw a wide variety of species, such as swans, terns, water rails, snipe, oystercatchers and eider ducks. Grey and common seals were regular visitors; a more unusual guest was the distinctive spoonbill, which delighted viewers in July.

Click here if you'd like to see the Montrose Basin camera.

The webcam at the Falls of Clyde shows the spectacular Corra Linn waterfall. Wordsworth and Turner are among the thousands who have been inspired by the Falls. When the Clyde valley has received heavy rainfall, the sight of the Falls in full spate is breathtaking.

Click here to see the Falls of Clyde webcam.

Commenting, Scottish Wildlife Trust Chairman Allan Bantick said:

“We are grateful to People’s Postcode Lottery for helping the Scottish Wildlife Trust to broadcast wildlife on the web. This provides a fantastic opportunity for people near and far to see the range of wildlife at our three flagship Visitor Centres.

“2011 was the best ever year for our webcams. More people than ever before are looking at our wildlife.

“With a bit of patience, you can see some fantastic sights. Roe deer, woodpeckers and red squirrels are all regularly seen on the camera at Loch of the Lowes.

“I hope that people will continue to watch the webcams and be inspired to come on down to our Visitor Centres to see wildlife right in front of their eyes.”