THE red grouse is an unmistakable plump bird with reddish-brown plumage about the size of a small domestic hen that is commonly found in upland heathlands.
Its mottled feathers provide good camouflage which blends well into the heather-coated hills. It is not uncommon to hear the grouse before seeing it, as it makes a distinctive ‘go back, go back!’ call when flushed from cover.
The red grouse looks like it constantly wears woolly socks – its legs are white and feathered to keep them warm in winter.
Females and males look alike, except the fact that females are slightly paler and lack a bright red stripe above their eye; this is used by males to attract females during the mating season.
Red grouse have a short beak that is designed for extracting seeds and eating the flowers of heather. They also feed on insects, berries (especially bilberries) and grit, which helps to break down food in the gizzard.
Their mating season starts in autumn, when the birds start to form pairs and males become increasingly territorial.
They nest on the ground in hollows which are lined with tall grass.
The first red grouse I saw was seven years ago in Perthshire.
Since then, every autumn, when the heather is in full bloom, my husband Chris and I repeatedly visit the same areas in search of grouse.
There is something magical about sitting amongst the purple heather with the camera and looking for wildlife.
Although we always enjoyed our trips up north, we wished the grouse inhabited places closer to us. What we did not know was that the red grouse happily inhabits some East Lothian hills!
One day, whilst scouring the Lammermuir Hills, we heard the familiar ‘go back, go back!’
After accidentally spooking a mountain hare, a red grouse flew by. Both species came as a surprise – we had been told that hares and grouse lived in the Lammermuir Hills but we did not realise it was this easy to find them both.
Unfortunately, it was not so easy to photograph them!
The grouse camouflage well and are difficult to spot from the path. Walking through the moors was not the best idea either as I would flush them, and this is not the practice that I want to use. I must admit that the grouse in Perthshire were much more confiding – I remember a few of them coming close to check out the car or pose at the side of the road. That day in the Lammermuir Hills we gave up, but returned a couple of weeks later when the purple hue covered the hills.
This time I took a different approach – I was walking incredibly slowly through the moorland and taking 15-second-long breaks after each step.
If a bird was in close vicinity to me and heard my steps, they would pop their heads out to check the surroundings. The 15 seconds were enough to scan the area with binoculars and spot the grouse.
If I found a bird, I would back off or slowly sit down and wait. I did not attempt to hide as, first, the heather is too short to give enough coverage and, secondly, the grouse were fine with letting me watch them from an acceptable distance.
They just needed some time to acknowledge my presence and realise that I was not a threat.
A couple of attempts and success! Finally, a lovely capture of a red grouse in Scottish heather.
Although it is only May, I cannot wait to visit the hills this autumn and I will be going soon to look for adorable red grouse chicks!
Speak to you next month!
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