Two of thirteen beautiful Snow Buntings in a light dusting of snow and crisp winter sunshine in the hills above Lerwick, Shetland this morning. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #UKWildlife #Birds

The Bittern obeying the RSPB rules and regs at Loch of Spiggie, Shetland... #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #UKWildlife #Birds

A stop-the-car-now moment: fabulous views of this Eurasian Bittern feeding in a roadside burn at the northern end of Loch of Spiggie today. A rare bird here in Shetland with less than 30 records of this cryptic heron! #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #UKWildlife #Birds

Fabulous views of three Orcas as we stood on the cliffs at Sumburgh Head, Shetland this afternoon. Here's bull '72' - a member of the '27s' pod - and together with '73' and her calf '153', the threesome regularly 'split' from the main pod. 🖤🤍 #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

A short video of the female King Eider that has frequented Quendale Bay here in Shetland since finding it in early December. Also a very welcome addition to the house list...🏡✅ #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #UKWildlife #Birds

Strike a pose: lovely to find this adult Little Gull at Leebitton, Shetland today which was joined by another individual shortly after. These pint-sized gulls are scarce winter visitors to Shetland and are the first records for 2026. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #UKWildlife #Birds

Tuesday night at Lerwick, Shetland 2026 Up Helly Aa 🔥 as enjoyed by our two groups. Thanks to everyone who makes this event so spectacular each and every year! #Shetland #uphellyaa

Lovely views of the long-staying drake American Wigeon in the Ringasta / Brow area of the south Mainland of Shetland this week. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #UKWildlife #Birds

One of many highlights for our two @shetlandwildlife.bsky.social groups today - a beautiful Waxwing feeding on apples in a garden in Voe up in the north Mainland of Shetland. Thanks Julia! #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #UKWildlife #Birds

Taiga Bean Geese (right hand three birds) with a couple of Greylags in beautiful winter light at Exnaboe, Shetland this morning. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #UKWildlife #Birds

Orca calves!!! A short clip of aerial footage from our encounter with the 27s Orcas in Yell Sound, Shetland earlier this week. Great to see the two calves born in 2022 and 2024 alongside their mothers.🖤🤍 #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

ORCAS! Today we spent a couple of hours following the 27s pod from land as they headed east from Ollaberry. We enjoyed superb views of six individuals as they passed us off Mossbank. Great to see both of the young calves born in 2022 & 2024. #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

Two of the three Taiga Bean Geese in the snow at Toab, Shetland this afternoon. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #UKWildlife #Birds

No. 1 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen by guests on our 2025 tours: Orcas. We enjoyed several incredible encounters this year including this July day when we followed the '65s' pod from land enjoying views down to just a few metres! #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

No. 2 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen in 2025: an incredible nursery pod of at least 120 Bottlenose Dolphins in Vidlin Voe in early November. Only the fourth-ever documented record for Shetland inshore waters. A magical day! #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

No. 3 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen on our 2025 tours was this male Siberian Thrush which, with patience, afforded absolutely brilliant views for both of our Autumn birding groups in early October. Stunning! #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #UKWildlife #Birds

Lovely views of these three Taiga Bean Geese at Spiggie, Shetland this morning. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #UKWildlife #Birds

No. 4 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen on our 2025 tours was this stunning Grey Phalarope in summer plumage at Loch of Spiggie in early June. No wonder why the rest of the world calls them Red Phalaropes! #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #UKWildlife

No. 5 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen on our 2025 tours - this nursery pod of Pilot Whales in Mousa Sound. Some of the calves were tiny and looked just a few weeks - if not days - old. Footage by @hughharrop.bsky.social #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

No. 6 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen in 2025 were several encounters with Humpbacks including a MATCH to an individual first documented off the Azores in 2016, off Svalbard in 2017 and then by us here in Shetland in March 2025. Amazing! #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

No. 7 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen on our 2025 tours were several sightings of 'Northern' Long-tailed Tits in Autumn. Watching these flying lollipops was a privilege and we are not sure there is a word that can justify their beauty! #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #UKWildlife

No. 8 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen on our 2025 tours was the superpod of White-beaked Dolphins off the coast of Shetland - the 6th species of cetacean we saw that week! Aerial footage by @hughharrop.bsky.social #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

No. 9 in our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen on our 2025 tours - Dotterels. We enjoyed lovely views of these two migrants at Stenness in May. Very small numbers pass through Shetland every spring so it was an absolute joy to watch this pair. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #Birds #UKWildlife

Stand up for gannets. Let’s stop the Guga Hunt together.

In the run up to 2026 we'll feature our Top 10 highlights of wildlife seen on our 2025 Shetland tours. To kick off, here's No.10 - a magnificent summer plumaged Red-necked Grebe at Wadbister. Far from annual here with most Shetland records occurring November - March. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding

Here in the south of Shetland today, the sun rose at 0907 and set at 1500 giving us 5 hours and 53 minutes of daylight. At the summer solstice we'll get nearly 19 hours of daylight! Here's 30 seconds of our #WinterSolstice day enjoying the sight and sounds of Atlantic swells at Quendale Bay.

'Our' female King Eider was still present in Quendale Bay, Shetland today and gave some nice views in the low winter sunshine. She saved the best until late afternoon with this close royal flypast... #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

Nice to find a female King Eider just down the road from home in Quendale Bay, Shetland this afternoon. Here's a short video of her keeping company with a female Long-tailed Duck. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

Four years ago today, Freya the wandering Walrus arrived here in Shetland for a four week stay. 248 days later she was murdered by the Directorate of Fisheries in Norway as she was perceived to be a "threat to human safety". Abhorrent and unforgivable on every level. #MarineLife #MarineMammals

A short video from our encounter with some of the '27s' Orcas as they headed north out of Vidlin Voe, Shetland on Friday. Includes a few cameo appearances from the 14-month-old calf - the latest addition to the pod. #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

ORCAS!!! We enjoyed absolutely brilliant views of the 27s pod today out in a very windy east Mainland of Shetland. Here's bull '34' photographed just off Laxo this afternoon with the low winter sunshine illuminating his massive dorsal fin. #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

Kingfisher illuminating Loch of Clickimin, Shetland today with its dazzling colours. Kingfishers are very rare birds here in Shetland with <30 records. This one has been in the area since 22nd October 2025 but it can disappear for days on end. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #Birds #UKWildlife

Red-necked Grebes are less than annual here in Shetland so it was nice to find this individual on the home patch of Hillwell over the weekend. Also a very welcome addition to the house list...🏡✅ #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #Birds #UKWildlife

A quick dash to Spiggie this afternoon to see this female SIBERIAN RUBYTHROAT released back in to the ‘Bumblebird’ wild bird crop. Clearly autumn isn’t over for us here in Shetland! #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

How was your spring and summer? Read about ours here in Shetland at shetlandwildlife.co.uk/news.htm #MarineMammals #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #UKWildlife #MarineLife #CetaceansUK

Another amazing day for watching Humpback Whales off the south Mainland of Shetland with still at least seven individuals recorded along a 10km stretch of coast between Levenwick and Fladdabister! #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

The Queen of Scalloway: female King Eider in Scalloway Harbour, Shetland today illuminated by beautiful, soft winter sunshine. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

One of at least seven Humpback Whales off the south Mainland of Shetland today. Amazing! #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

Fabulous views of this female King Eider (perhaps better called a 'Queen' Eider) in Scalloway Harbour, Shetland this morning. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

Volume up 🔊... The wonderful sound of a couple of hundred Twite - known here in Shetland as 'Linties' - at Loch of Spiggie in one of the 40 'Bumblebird' wildlife-friendly crops grown by crofters and the Shetland Species on the Edge team in 2025. 👏 #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #Birds #UKWildlife

Early in the month, these two Oriental Turtle Doves occasionally roosted in our Shetland garden and would feed up on seed before spending the rest of the day in the barley. That's now three OTDs we've had in our garden this year! Bonkers! #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

Lovely views of this Hume's Warbler in the morning sunshine at Gremista, Lerwick, Shetland today. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

A marshmallow with wings: one of two beautiful white-headed 'Northern' Long-tailed Tits in Scalloway, Shetland today. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

All the way from Siberia: a Dusky Warbler at Sannick, Shetland last week. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

Still buzzing from our amazing encounter with this nursery pod of Bottlenose Dolphins over the weekend. They constitute only the fourth confirmed record of this species in Shetland inshore waters. #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

Jack Snipe in typical habitat and in typical 'you cannot see me' pose. Amazing birds! Pic taken over the weekend here in Shetland. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #Birds #UKWildlife

A short video of the nursery pod of Bottlenose Dolphins in Vidlin Voe, Shetland yesterday. Check out some of those tiny calves! Only the fourth confirmed record of this species in Shetland waters. #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

Mother and calf Bottlenose Dolphins in Vidlin Voe, Shetland today. Part of an incredible nursery pod of 120+ individuals. Only the fourth-ever documented record for Shetland inshore waters following sightings in Dec 2002, Aug 2024 & Sep 2025. #MarineLife #MarineMammals #CetaceansUK #UKWildlife

Enjoying point blank views of this gorgeous Firecrest at Sandwick, Shetland on Wednesday when it was joined by a second individual! Unlike their commoner cousins, Firecrests are much rarer here with only a handful of records every year. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #Birds #UKWildlife

The reason why our local Blackbirds were going absolutely nuts at dusk today: this magnificent migrant Long-eared Owl perched on a bale handler behind the barns here at Hillwell, Shetland. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #Birds #UKWildlife