Scottish Wildlife Trust

11/08/2026

Check out this fantastic badger photo that Mark Rielly Photography managed to snap on one of our Falls of Clyde Wildlife Reserve Badger Watches recently! 🦡

Book your spot on the next Badger Watch via our website if you'd to try and spot these stripey stars! 👉 https://bit.ly/4xEdDIB

Dusk.
Light is fading fast.
We sat in absolute silence, hoping.
A slight sound of rustling from below our eye level where we couldn't quite see...
Plants and grass then start moving a touch closer to us, then a flash of black and white appears!
Yes!
A clan of badgers had emerged from there sets to start foraging!
This was my first time seeing badgers in the wild and it was a brilliant experience!
🥳🦡🦡

Another species ticked off my never-ending list! 📝

Thanks to Scottish Wildlife Trust for letting me tag along on this one!!

10/08/2026

If you’re aged 18–30 and joining us at Sea Scotland, you’re invited to attend our exclusive pre-conference youth workshop and social, designed to help you make the most of your Sea Scotland experience.

Whether it’s your first conference or you’re a seasoned conference delegate, this is a great opportunity to build confidence, meet other young people, and feel ready to have your voice heard during the day’s discussions.

Please note that this ticket includes access to Sea Scotland on 27th October, so if you’re attending the youth workshop, there’s no need to register separately for a Sea Scotland ticket.

Limited spaces are available, so make sure to book soon via the LINK BELOW! 🌊
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sea-scotland-2026-youth-package-workshop-dinner-conference-tickets-1993337630512?aff=erelpanelorg

08/08/2026

Check out this fantastic video of a snipe chick that was spotted on our Handa Island Reserve!

Did you know that snipe have a have a flexible tip to the beak which is also full of nerves: they can feel for worms deep underground and then open the end of their beak to grab them?! 🪱

Huge thanks for volunteer, Manisha Parmar for the great footage.

07/08/2026

If you're looking for your next podcast, don't forget to check out our Words of the Wild podcast series. 🎧

Featuring everything from kittiwakes to Cumbernauld, snakes to snorkelling, red squirrels to river woodlands and everything in between!

All episodes now available 👉 https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/podcast/

06/08/2026

In the spirit of here's some nautical wanderers snapped by our newest Ambassador, Kiran Simpson Photography! Check out Kiran's comments below for some of the feelings behind each image. 👇

1. Puffin - One of the things I love about the Isle of May is noticing the tiny behaviours you'd miss if you weren't sitting quietly. This one kept looking around, so I got my camera ready and waited… then he turned and looked straight at me, beak lined up perfectly with the lens. That bemused "what are you looking at?" face 😂

2. White-tailed sea eagle - It's extraordinary to live in a country with birds as incredible as the white-tailed sea eagle. Watching this one cruise past the hills, barely flapping, was a moment I'll never forget, felt so privileged to see it in the wild.

3. Gannet skimming the wave - Watching this gannet glide right above the waves, wingtip almost brushing the water, was something special. Huge bird, Europe's largest seabird, two-metre wingspan yet so unbelievably graceful.

4. Two puffins in flight - You know when a moment you've dreamed of finally happens? This was one of those. Two puffins perfectly lined up against those clouds everything just came together. Still amazed I managed to press the shutter.

5. Gannets bill-tapping - I was so lucky to take a boat trip round Bass Rock and get close to these two. Watching them bill-tapping, strengthening their lifelong bond, was such a heart-warming moment to witness.

05/08/2026

Fantastic to see that our friends at Northumberland Wildlife Trust have now passed the £20m mark for their Rothbury Estate appeal. A remarkable achievement and testament to the ambition behind the project. Listen to this week's Guardian Science Weekly Podcast for more on the site just south of the border. Wishing them every success as they push towards the finish line.

If you've 15 minutes to spare, listen to the Guardian Science Weekly Podcast discussing The Rothbury Estate from various perspectives - for nature, for archaeology and for farming. 🎙️

What makes the landscape so special, how traditions and land use over thousands of years have shaped the area we love so much today, and with the knowledge we now have about the environment how that can influence our direction for the future. 💚

The Guardian Science Weekly Podcast:-
https://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2026/aug/04/wildlife-trusts-fight-to-save-historic-english-landscape-podcast

04/08/2026

Streams of Creativity is an online gallery celebrating Scotland's river woodlands 🌊🌳

These willow fish were created by Project Officer Clementine and Tom, Tree Nursery Manager at the Kyle of Sutherland Fisheries Tree Hatchery.

The Tree Hatchery grows native trees for planting along local rivers, where they provide shade, strengthen riverbanks and create habitats for fish and other wildlife.

If you've created something inspired by rivers or river woodlands, we'd love to feature it.

Find out more and submit your work here: https://www.riverwoods.org.uk/take-action/tell-us-what-rivers-mean-to-you/

📸Clementine Leemans

03/08/2026

You may have seen earlier today that we shared the welcome news that the Trust-led Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels project is in the latest round to receive vital funding through the Nature Restoration Fund. This Fund is one of Scotland’s most effective public investment programmes, delivering on nature recovery, climate adaptation, flood management, water quality, woodland expansion, species conservation and community wellbeing.

We've written to the First Minister, Cabinet Secretary and Ministers highlighting how important the Nature Restoration Fund is in delivering against multiple government priorities and that it should therefore be increased in line with inflation. Read the full letter here:https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Open-letter-on-the-Nature-Restoration-Fund-1.pdf

03/08/2026

Some fantastic news for Saving Scotland's Red Squirrels!

We're delighted to announce that we have received nearly £2 million from The Scottish Government's Nature Restoration Fund, managed by NatureScot!

Read more about what that funding will allow us to do for red squirrels: https://scottishsquirrels.org.uk/2026/08/03/news-almost-2-million-secured-for-red-squirrel-conservation/

Net Zero Scotland Scottish Wildlife Trust
Forestry and Land Scotland RSPB Scotland Scottish Land & Estates Aberdeen City Council Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park

📷 Keilidh Ewan

02/08/2026

Nominations to the Trustees’ Awards for Volunteering are now open!

If there is a volunteer at the Trust who you feel deserves special recognition for all their hard work, this is your opportunity to celebrate their achievements.

There are four categories:

Young volunteer
Group award
Species champion
Lifetime achievement

Find out more and submit your nomination at the link below

https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/news/trustees-awards-for-volunteering-open-for-entries-2026/

📸 Martin Shields