Summer Tours
Booking: To book any of the following tours please contact Steve on 01870 620241 or 07733 026663. Alternatively you can email me on steveduffield@hebrides.net
All pre-booked tours will be met at your port of entry to the Uists, whether you come by air or sea. You will be taken to your comfortable lodgings to relax and gather yourself whilst having the opportunity to meet some of the other guests and local characters. All tours include the cost of breakfast, packed lunch and dinner (drinks are not included). All travel on and between islands is also arranged and paid for to make your stay as relaxing as we can and allow you to enjoy the wildlife.
Dates: June – one week all inclusive tours
Seabird
Special
June 29th - July 5th 2008
Expected Wildlife highlights: the trip to Mingulay and a sail round the rugged western coast of this island is something you will always remember. The cliffs and cliff tops hold colonies of Puffins, Guillemots and Razorbills as well as the truly pelagic Kittiwake whilst the island top is home to around twenty pairs of Great Skua that are renowned for their aggressive dive bombing when approaching too close to their nest. In reality very few of these skuas make contact and most intruders find a large dark bird with a four-foot wing span swooping down on them warning enough not to carry on. Other exciting species we are likely to see here include both Golden and White-tailed Eagle. The tour also takes in all the southern islands from Mingulay in the far south to Berneray in the north. We will also visit a sight for the endemic Hebridean Marsh Orchid, a plant confined to a small area of North Uist. We will also try our hand at moth trapping to see just what is lurking in the dark
Itinerary: At some point during the week we will take a boat trap to Mingulay, a small island south of Barra with an excellent seabird colony. We will also have short walks on the machair to revel in the breeding wader assemblages at Balranald and at Bornish as well as exploring all the major islands in the southern part of the Hebridean chain from Barra and Mingulay in the south to Berneray and its excellent machair in the north.
Short list of species: Red-throated Diver, Corncrake, Spotted Crake (only hear), eight species of raptor including both Golden and White-tailed Eagles as well as Short-eared Owl. Arctic Tern, Little Tern, four species of auk including Puffins, Great skua, Arctic skua, Hebridean races of Song Thrush and Wren are common and species that are struggling in other parts of the UK include Twite, Skylark (in abundance) and the Corn Bunting (this last species is also thought to a race found nowhere else in the UK). Red deer, Otter, Common and Grey Seal. Lesser Butterfly Orchid, Hebridean Marsh Orchid (on first tour)
Machair in
bloom
July 20th - 26th 2008
Expected highlights: This tour looks at the resident seabirds in the Western Isles and visits the most accessible colony on Mingulay, a very exciting island at the southern end of the archipelago. We will get up close and personal with puffins, Razorbills and Guillemots as well as the resident Great Skuas. Other birds we are likely to encounter include at least eight species of raptors including two eagle species and three falcon species. We will also take a look at the great variety of flowers that are emerging on the machair and how species composition varies from the cropped and fallow areas.
Itinerary: This tour explores the southern isles including Barra and hopefully Mingulay, weather permitting, Eriskay (the Whisky Galore island) South Uist, Benbecula, North Uist and Berneray. All the islands have their own feel and wildlife highlights. We will explore the delights all these islands have to offer whilst making the most of the prevailing weather conditions.
Short list of species: Golden Eagle, White-tailed Eagle, Hen Harrier, Peregrine, Merlin, Great Skua, Arctic Skua, Short-eared Owl, Corncrake (probably hear only), Little Tern, Guillemot, Razorbill, Puffin, Black Guillemot, Storm Petrel, Corn Bunting, Twite, Common Seal, Grey Seal, Otter, Red Deer, Great Yellow Bumblebee, Lesser Butterfly Orchid, Northern Marsh Orchid, plus a myriad of flowers on the machair.
Birds and bees
July
Expected Wildlife highlights: This is a very diverse tour looking at many aspects of the natural history in the islands. We will take a number of walks onto the machair to have a look at the range of plants growing in the adjoining crops and fallow areas. We will get a fascinating insight into how man has inadvertently helped create a diversity of wildlife that wouldn’t have existed here without him. We look at the insects of both the night and day and of course the birds. The islands host an excellent array of stunning species that can be readily found in large quantities here and then there are always the otters and the seals; a true wildlife menagerie.
Itinerary: Based in the southern isles we will explore a range of habitats in the Uists with a day trip to the beautiful island of Barra.
Short list of species: Red-throated Diver, Golden Eagle, White-tailed Eagle, Merlin, Peregrine, Hen Harrier, Short-eared Owl, Whimbrel, Great Skua, Arctic Skua, Basking Shark, Porpoise, Otter, Red Deer, Grey Seal, Common Seal, Great Yellow Bumblebee, Moss Carder Bumblebee, Colletes Floralis (a rare mining bee) plus a rich variety of plant life.
Walking
with Wildlife
August
17th - 23rd August 2008
Expected Wildlife highlights: An excellent relaxing tour making the most of what the southern isles have to offer. We will experience a rich variety of wildlife from the rare and diminutive Irish Lady's Tresses Orchid to the majestic Golden Eagle and the fascinating Basking Shark. The machair is in excellent condition at this time of year with many of the flowers in full bloom and insect life is at it's most abundant.
Itinerary: This tour takes us to many areas of the islands the other tours neglect and includes some moderate walking. The walks are designed so that we can take in the scenery and explore some of the diverse flora and fauna at a leisurely pace. It’s the best time to come for the floral displays on the machair and in the hills with their fascinating variety of semi-carnivorous plants. You don’t have to go far. We concentrate our efforts on the southern isles which includes both North and South Uist, Benbecula, Berneray, Eriskay with a trip to Barra thrown in.
Short list of species: Golden Eagle, White-tailed Eagle, Hen Harrier, Peregrine, Merlin, Short-eared Owl, Great Skua, Arcitic Skua, Black Guillemot, Red-throated Diver, Storm Petrel, Grey Seal, Common Seal, Otter, Porpoise, Red Deer, Basking Shark, Great Yellow Bumblebee, a diverse range of flowers from the full array of habitats to be found in the southern isles including the rare Irish Lady Tresses.
All the tours above cost only £ 750 all inclusive.
2 or 3 days basic guided tours without food and accommodation are available. Please contact Steve on: steveduffield@hebrides.net
