oystercatchers -Haematopus ostralegus- are 'Waders' and are usualy found on heavilly grazed or burned patches on peaty bog moor's, some live in Scotland all year round and others migrate here in the winter or use it as resting point in there journey, they feed on moluscs and worms from mud and sand and some even in Inland habitats, visiting estuaries to breed. They use their bills to cut the muscles of unwary cockle's rendering them defenseless, they also break their way into some shells using hard ground as an anvil. Fishermen in the past have blamed these birds for the decline in the number of cockle fishing areas.

Greenshank's -Tringa nebularia- are one of the most beautifull of Scotlands birds, they have adapted well to the infertile bogs of the western parts of Scotland and live on burned or well grazed patches near shallow pools in agricultural areas so they have to rely on farmers maintaining the land, elswhere in Europe however the birds only breed in forest bogs, there are still small numbers here that live in the forest bogs of Strathspey but unfortunately the enviroment/habitat of this type is uncommon here now due to the industrial revolution and other human interference.

puffin's -Fratercula arctica- are found in the coastal and Island cliff areas of the north of Scotland, they are probably the most easilly recognised birds in the country with their colourful markings and unique profile, they are small and have quite a small wing span making their flight look rather akward and clumsy, they live in burrows and will sometimes allow you to get quite close to them provided you move slowly, they feed on small fish which they often drop or loose to other larger predatory birds, if in fact the predator does not choose to take the puffin itself rather than it's meagre catch !.

Henharrier -Circus cyaneus- this particular bird is a female that is busy incubating a clutch of eggs , the Hen harrier has been here for a long time, but only as recently as the 1940's has it begun to ocuppy the Scottish mainland from it's base in the Orkney Island's, It's numbers are continuing to increasing here too despite persecution by humans and marine pollution, which is an amazing feat as it is on the decline in other part's of Europe and Britain, so this bird is a great success story for bird lovers in Scotland and eventually perhaps farther afield.

Capercaillie -Tetrao urogallus- The Capercaillie or woodgrouse finds it's home in the conifer forests of the Highlands, this particular individual is male as you can tell by the striking flashes of red and white, the ploomage of the female is paler and a lot less colourfull as is usual in certain species of bird. Unfortunately this beautifull creature was one of the many indigenous species in this country to be hunted in to extinction, by around the 1770's they had all been wiped out, but thankfully due to a re-introduction plan introduced in 1837 Capercailiies have re-populated and taken up their previously lost territory successfully.

Snow Bunting -Plectrophenax nivalis- this rare songbird arrived following the retreating snow of the ice age, the male in the picture is wearing his winter plumage. Mostly they nest in the high points of moors and coasts between 820 and 1220meters during the winter but some nest in the most Arctic places like the Cairngorm mountains during the summer, flocks are sometimes attracted to areas where there are large numbers of tourist's as they provide a wealth of leftover food from their packed lunches.

Dottrel -Charadrius morinellus- this rare wader arrived in Scotland following the tail of the retreating ice age, they inhabit the beds of heather in high places and nest there from May until August, the female defends the nest territory and courts the smaller less colourful male who in turn incubates the eggs and rears it's young, sometimes this role reversal allows the pair to have 2 clutches of egg's, one for the male and one for the female, and all this before leaving the Highland's of Scotland for the dessert's of the Middle East.

Great skua -Skua- this once rare sea bird now well numbered is commonly know as a 'Bonxie'. It is a very aggressive, territorial bird and will attack anything that comes near it's nesting ground, it will swoop and scream at the intruder human or animal untill it gets you out of harms way, they will however give you a warning unlike the Bonxies relation the Arctic Skua which will silently swoop at your head from behind without so much as a squeak for a pre-warning. They are most common in the hebridean and northern isles and some parts of the most northenly coastal areas.

Fulmar -Fulmaris glacialis- One of the most common birds in the coastal areas of the Scotland, Wales, Ireland and England started it's journey on the small Scottish island of Foula, a census was done in 1970 showing that there were 305600 sites in all coastal areas although 90 percent of the population remain in Orkney, Shetland, the outer hebrides and north west Scotland. For an Arctic bird once only found there and on islands like St.Kilda it is strange that they have gone on to inhabit these more southernly areas, it is thought that among other things this could be attributed to the supply of food made avaliable by trawlers and whaling ships.