Scotland Holiday Day 5 – 10th July 2012 : Sea Eagles at Loch Na Keal

Scotland Holiday Day 5 – 10th July 2012 : Sea Eagles at Loch Na Keal

The previous day we had gone to Glen Seilisdeir to see the White-tailed Eagle’s nest in the forest bu we wanted to have a closer experience of these birds so to this end we had also booked a boat trip with Mull Charters who did 10am boat trips up Loch Na Keal to the area where the eagles fished.This involved us driving down to Salen Bay and turning left to cross the island at it narrowest point to get to Gruline and then we took the B8073 to the Ulva Ferry. As well as being the pier for the short hop over to Ulva which is supposed to be a very beautiful island, it was also the setting off point for our boat trip. As we stood waiting for our boat and gazing into the harbour where there were a few small boats moored another person waiting for the same boat as us pointed out to us an otter frolicking in the water of the harbour !

With this start to the day we had high hopes for a very special outing and we were not to be disappointed. There were around ten people on the small boat and we started by sailing up Loch Na Keal past the small islands of Inch Kenneth and Eorsa. As we sailed up the loch we saw a few Gannets and some Common Terns. On the small islands there were Greylag Geese, Oystercatcher and Grey Heron and on the water were Canada Geese and Black Guillemots. After about an hour or so we had reached the part of the water deemed most propitious by the skipper and as he lobbed out bits of fish the Lesser Black-backed and Great Black-backed and Herring Gulls all started to collect around the boat giving us very close views at all sorts of angles as they squabbled and fought over the scraps of fish that were being thrown overboard.

After a bit a bird could be seen in the distant forest and this could only be an eagle. This was the cue for a couple of whole fish to appear and sure enough the bird took off from its forest perch and slowly glided towards us. As it got nearer a whole fish was thrown over and it landed just forty feet from us. The gulls all immediately swooped and one managed to get the fish but just then the White-tailed Eagle started to circle the boat in the air above us. This seemed to be the cue for the other birds to scarper and as another fish was thrown in the water the Sea Eagle swooped on the fish making the most tremendous noise as its wing feathers whooshed past us, by now still about 40 feet away. It’s id tags also rattled loudly making a most memorable noise. The bird with a wing span of two and a half metres was just a short distance from us when it dipped its talons into the water and grabbed on to the birds. Trying to take pictures was about as demanding as it gets and nothing really prepares you for the fantastic speed at which this bird descends onto the water and scoops up its prey and rises again.

The bird disappeared with the fish and returned to its tree perch but the next time it felt like a snack it came towards us and then a second figure could be seen just behind and to the side – we were getting a view of both the male and the female of the pair and they circled above us making a dizzying spectacle as we tried to get good views against the sky of first the one then the other. Both eventually fed and the sight of them returning to their favourite perches to enjoy their meal, white tails flashing in the sunlight, was just amazing.

We had one last chance to see one of the birds return before it was time for us to be heading back. This time we went a bit faster stopping only to look at Grey and Common seals of Inch Kenneth. We returned to the pier at Ulva Ferry at last satisfied that we had truly seen the Sea Eagle in all its glory and we could not really have asked for more.

On our way back we stopped off at Gruline for a walk and this led us down a path to the Macquarie Monument which is the mausoleum of
Major General Lachlan Macquarie a native of Ulva. He joined the army in 1776 and served in North America, Egypt and India. Most famously, in April 1809 he was appointed Governor of New South Wales with instructions to restore order after a rebellion against the previous governor, William Bligh the ex-commander of “The Bounty” On our walk we saw Robins, Wrens, Blackbirds, Pied Wagtails, Swallows and Chaffinch.

As we drove home we also saw Hooded Crow, Oystercatcher, Grey Heron and Wheatear. This completed the most spectacular day for us and probably the most memorable day of our holiday though we still had a treat in store the next day when we had booked a boat trip to Lunga in the Treshnish Islands and Staffa and Fingal’s Cave !

Bird Sightings : Mull