Hey folks,

Today’s pic is of one of local coastal residents, the Oyster Catcher. These goofy looking birds (they look admittedly less goofy when in flight) have long beaks for fishing food out of the sand – namely oysters, though on this occasion worms seemed to be the more common catch. Actually, in the UK they mainly eat mussels and cockles.

Their populations are in decline across the UK and Europe, particularly so in Scotland, and are listed as vulnerable and on the amber list for the UK. No one is quite sure why their numbers have been falling, but the likely culprit is over-fishing of their main food source, shellfish.

Thanks for visiting,

Kaylin x