Our tours are peppered with sightings of birds, the most magnificent being the eagles, of course! The west coast of Scotland is an ideal habitat for golden eagles and white tailed sea eagles, and the islands around Easdale are no exception!
Our 2 hour Corryvreckan Wildlife Tour will take you on a loop around Scarba, a small uninhabited island, filled with woodland and heathland, prime territory for white tailed sea eagles – the eagle with the largest wingspan in the world! The same pair of sea eagles have returned to the same tree on Scarba for eight years to raise their chicks and our boats will give you a superb view of the nest from the water.
White tailed sea eagles were once extinct in the UK but have been reintroduced with great success; Scotland alone now has around 200 nesting pairs!
The sea eagles are often seen soaring in the air around Scarba and Jura (a second nest spot!) showing off their 2.5-metre wingspan or they’ll be sat perched on the rocks, showing off their mighty yellow beaks and regal feathers.
Sea eagle chicks fledge after two months in the nest and rely on their parents for food for the rest of the summer. Come the autumn the parents convince the chick to hunt for itself and you may see them fighting.
If you’re heading out on our Wildlife and Whales Corryvreckan Tour, you may head past The Garvellachs (depending on the tide) where golden eagles nest high up on the cliffs. Golden eagles, though smaller than the sea eagles, are still impressive birds with a 2-metre wingspan and a fierce hunting habit.
Golden Eagles are ferocious hunters and will catch almost anything.
Being smaller, they are more agile and thus excellent hunters who go for fish, rabbits, voles, birds and even baby deer! That said, the golden eagles are also very fussy hunters who will choose to sit out wet and windy weather to keep their feathers dry.