Scottish Red Grouse
Red Grouse are a symbol of upland and moorland Britain and while up in Scotland last year this was one of the species I was very excited to see. While we were driving through a vast open area of heather or rough grass, we were keenly scanning the tops as we were now in one of their well know localities. Finally I spotted one feeding only a couple metres from the car.
Gradually more and more started to pop up and their unique call started to fill the landscape. We were right in the middle of them during the season they display. Spotting them became easier as they were near the road and some males were displaying in flight. They’re relatively obliging if your slow and keep low to the ground, which meant a lot better shots outside of the car. A few were already paired up but the females were more difficult to see as they blend in with their golden brown plumage while the males red brown and bright red eyebrows were easy to point out.
The two photos above were actually taken from the car as if it was a hide. There was a slight mound which helped in keeping the subjects eye level. I’m pleased that this female showed as well, because generally they were a lot quieter and harder to pinpoint, often keeping hunkered down in the thick grass.
Walking and then lying down on the damp and boggy terrain was fun as we were trying to approach the grouse. Some interesting behaviour could be observed while watching them display. The photo above is one I like in that with the depth of field and smooth back and foreground it really isolates the grouse as it calls, the eyebrows stand out as quite vibrant too.
Overall in less than an hour we had such a brilliant encounter with multiple grouse, all along the road down to the loch. Their obliging behaviour also made it more enjoyable as some species only offer fleeting views. For the most part, many Scottish species turned out to be very obliging, even ones that I had encountered before and for the first time, which I’ll share in future posts.