Montrose Basin is an enclosed estuary of the river South Esk covering 750 hectares, home to over 80,000 migratory birds – including pink-footed geese, Arctic terns, knots and sedge warblers. Our four-star visitor centre offers a great day out for all the family in Angus.
Address: Montrose Basin, Rossie Braes, Angus DD10 9TA
Why visit?
Highlights include:
- Telescopes and binoculars set up and ready to use
- Interactive toys and games – including microscopes and puzzles
- Regular wildlife events – guided walks, children’s activities
- Formal and informal education programmes for school groups run all year round
- Fairtrade tea and coffee available – relax with panoramic views across the Basin
-
Range of wildlife gifts available from our gift shop
Best time to visit?
- Easter to Oct for activities
- Apr to Aug for sand martins
- Oct to Feb for wintering geese
- Anytime for wildfowl and waders
Visit for:
- birdwatching
- coasts
- geology
- scenery
- mammals
Other information
This tidal basin is an important roosting and feeding area for a variety of passage migrants, and is internationally important for breeding eiders and wintering waders and wildfowl, attracting up to 80,000 pink-footed geese in winter.
Events
Find out what events are taking place at Montrose Basin in the coming months by viewing our events leaflet.
You can book on to these events by clicking the button below.
Discover the Basin with one of our self-guided audio tours
If you would like to learn more about the Basin, our audio tours are a great place to start. Choose from four tours available through izi.TRAVEL. These tours can be accessed online or through the izi.TRAVEL mobile app available for iPhone and Android.
It’s mid-July, Summer is in full-flow, and birdwatchers are already thinking “Wow, I can’t wait for Autumn to arrive.” What you’ll see at Montrose Basin very much depends on the time of year – July is great for osprey spotting and watching terns and sand martins, and in July 2017 we were delighted to have regular sightings of a juvenile kingfisher returning to the visitor centre perches after breeding season. But this time of year can be very quiet otherwise.…
Have you ever spotted a bird in your garden that has a ring on its leg and have you wondered what this ring actually means? At Montrose Basin we often see birds with rings or tags on them and this means we get to find out a lot of interesting information about their history. FC6 © David Reynolds Bird ringing is a way of tracking and identifying individual birds to keep a record of their movements…
My name is Jay, and I have just completed my second year at the University of Dundee, where I am studying to become a Primary School Teacher. In March-April this year, I undertook an 8 week voluntary placement at Montrose Basin Visitor Centre as part of the module Learning from Life, which provides a unique opportunity for students to gain some experience outside the classroom. At the beginning of my time at the Visitor Centre, I was admittedly very anxious…
So, they may not be your favourite plant and they’ve certainly earned themselves a bad reputation. But we’re here to change your mind about nettles, as we think they’re definitely under-rated and all-in-all a fantastic plant! Here are a few reasons why nettles are so great; They provide wonderful habitats for a whole host of wildlife. They’re a staple food source for a wide range of invertebrate species. If you’re into foraging, they can also be made into tasty meals…
Visitors to the Montrose Basin are often surprised to hear that an osprey has been sighted that day, but the reserve has actually become a very popular fishing spot for a whole variety of these birds of prey. The Basin’s osprey visitors take advantage of the tides, arriving at low tide to catch fish out of the shallower water, and then perching on fence posts with freshly caught fish once their usual driftwood perches have been completely submerged in water.…
Have you encountered fragments of bird egg shells in your garden, in the woods or when you’re out and about? They can be interesting finds, but which birds do they come from? This illustrated guide with our top tips will help you identify some of the more common shells you’re likely to find. If you find egg remnants on the ground, they’re likely to have been carried away after hatching by parent birds and discarded. They tend to drop them…
This final part of my blog covers another couple of birds that I have enjoyed seeing at the Basin, and a couple of things I would eventually like to see in the future if I have the chance to. Although I wouldn’t be surprised if the things I really want to see end up appearing on one of my days off when I won’t be here to see it. For example, I was really interested in seeing some more birds…
I started my new role as Visitor Centre Assistant on Monday 4/3/19. When I started I honestly knew next to nothing about birds and other wildlife around Montrose, but over the last few weeks I have been doing a lot of research and I feel that I have learned enough to try writing a blog. I tried to limit myself to only writing about a couple of birds that really interested me, but I got quite carried away, and wrote…