Workshops & Events

Not-for-profit events for

Birds, Moths, Plants and Mammals

Full List of Workshops & Events

Combine seeing some fantastic species, learning about identification and ecology, whilst supporting conservation projects.

Not-for-profit Workshops

Join us on our not-for-profit workshops to get the most out of your birding, mothing or mammaling and expand your field skills. Our time in the field will be spent enjoying our passion for birds, mammals or Lepidoptera whilst learning more about identification, plumages, songs and calls, tracks and signs, migration, ecology and trapping techniques all of which will add to your overall enjoyment of natural history and your knowledge of the subject.

Events

We have also included any nature-based events that we are taking part in.

2025 dates will be added soon.

Scroll down the page for more information.

Workshop Date Location Duration Cost
Deeside Nature Festival 23-26 May 2025 Upper Deeside Various Events Free or low cost
2025 Workshops coming soon TBC TBC TBC TBC

Read some of our reviews…

  • “Lovely afternoon spent with Rachael & Dan looking at all wild life in Royal Deeside. Both so knowledgeable and friendly, would recommend to anyone who needs a wild life guide! Hope to share some more memories with them.” Diana & Richard, UK

  • “I just wanted to write to say how much I enjoyed the recent nature walks with Dan & Rachael. Their wide knowledge of so many things made it all so interesting. It was great to have so many tiny plants and insects pointed out and identified. I really loved the days out, especially Keiloch, in the sunshine. There is so much to see and learn. Their guidance was so good. I certainly hope I can come on some more courses in the future.”

    Jenny, UK

 

Bird Identification Workshops

Get more from your birding! 

We have a series of half or full day sessions in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. You can book onto one or more sessions and profit from these events goes to the nature reserves utilised and also to bird conservation in Scotland.

Scottish Specials - 2025

Discover the uplifting calls and songs of the Caledonian Forest dawn chorus and summer seabirds on the Aberdeenshire coast where terns, spring waders, huge seabird colonies and farmland birds await.

Exact dates to be conformed - watch this space!

 

Sandwich Tern, Aberdeenshire (C) Dan Brown

 

Moth Workshops - Scottish Specialities

We are running a series of Lepidoptera events aimed at finding some of the UKs rarest or most difficult to see species. All the profits from these workshops will go to Butterfly Conservation helping to support projects that monitor, protect and manage these superb species.

Each of the events is timed to maximise the likelihood of encountering the key species utilising local knowledge and deploying all means necessary to find and enjoy these species.

Scottish Specialities - Dates to be confirmed

Watch this space!

 
Dark-bordered Beauty,  Dan Brown

Dark bordered Beauty Moth (c) Dan Brown

 

Braemar Nature Festival is becoming…

The Deeside Nature Festival

23rd - 26th May 2025

Following the success of the 2024 Braemar Nature Festival we have decided to run it again in 2025! Due to popular demand the festival has been expanded to cover the whole of the upper glen and therefore appropriately renamed, the ‘Deeside Nature Festival’.

You can find all the latest information on the 2025 festival using the button below, but in the meantime you can see what events Wild Discovery ran in the May 2024 festival below and click on the button for the full programme of 2024 events.

 

Watching Dippers and Grey Wagtails along the River Dee

 

Other Nature-Base Events

We are often involved in other events across the UK and we will keep this list updated as and when new events pop up.

11th - 13th July 2025: Global Bird Fair

Rutland, England

Wild Discovery will be exhibiting at the Global Bird Fair alongside many other nature-based businesses and charities, including tour operators, conservation charities, optic and camera retailers, artists and general wildlife-focused retailers.

The weekend is packed full of events for young and old along with countless presentations so naturally Wild Discovery will be involved with quite a few. Once we know the full details of the workshops and presentations that we will be hosting we’ll update this page.

 
Wild Discovery at the Global Bird fair 2023

Dan and Rachael at the Global Bird Fair in 2023


 

Whale and Dolphin Watching with CalMac Ferries

2025 dates to be confirmed.

Two crossings per day over 3 days on the Ullapool to Stornoway route.

With the popularity of this event growing and our expansion of the event to include two relevant charities this year we will be out on deck for a third year showing ferry passengers whales, dolphins and seabirds.

In August 2024 Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) and the Mammal Society joined us on board the Ullapool-Stornoway ferry crossings, engaging passengers about the whales and dolphins in Scottish waters AND pointing out these wonderful creatures so you could see them for yourselves. There was also an evening presentation in Ullapool ferry terminal giving in introduction to whale and dolphin spotting and the work that HWDT and the Mammal Society are doing to help build our understanding and protect our marine creatures.

This event follows the success of our collaboration with ferry operator CalMac Ferries in August 2023 when we spotted a whopping 949 whales and dolphins and over 18,000 birds!

Read our blog about about the 2023 event here.

 

Gallery

 

How it works…

Simply book on to your favoured event(s), confirm your place by paying in full and receive all the details about meeting times and places, what to bring and what to expect.

The exact running of the events will vary depending on the focal interest, for instance, our moth weekends will spend a considerable amount of time out at night, running light traps, inspecting sugared trees, monitoring pheromone lures and checking traps in the morning. Some birdwatching events may involve early starts.

 

What’s Included?

  • Professional services of one or two leaders depending on numbers

  • Shared use of optics during workshops & events

  • Shared use of identification guides during workshops & events

  • Water to top up your own reusable water bottle (we do not provide water bottles)

 

What’s Not Included?

  • Transport

  • Food, drinks

  • Accommodation

  • Event cancellation insurance or any other travel or medical insurance

  • Other items of a personal nature, e.g. souvenirs, etc.

 

If you have questions please get in touch

 

Read some more of our reviews

  • “We engaged Dan and Rachael for a family holiday in Scotland in July. From the start they were very friendly and listened carefully to our requirements. Our party consisted of my 86 year old mother, my partner and I (in our 60s), 22 year son and his partner. We were looking for local knowledge and guiding to enable all of us to 'get out there' as a group to enjoy different local habitats and wildlife, both in the Cairngorms and West Argyll coast, despite our varied abilities. Dan and Rachael came up with a programme which more than met our expectations. They also included activities such as moth trapping which was wonderful - their knowledge of moths was exceptional.

    As a team they demonstrated a very impressive all round knowledge of the natural history of the areas we explored and although my partner is a professional conservation biologist, there was still much that was new to us. They are excellent 'spotters'! I was unfortunately taken ill on one walk but they responded calmly and professionally, enabling me to be looked after whilst continuing to guide the rest of our group on the planned walk.

    We received some wonderful photographs from them as a reminder of a really enjoyable experience. I would not hesitate to recommend Dan and Rachael for guided wildlife experience - professional, competent, flexible, very knowledgeable and also a really lovely couple.” T. Knight, Wales.

  • “I joined Dan and Rachael for an evening tour to see Beavers and had expected to go to a hide and wait for the wildlife to come to us. Arriving at the riverbank, we explored for signs of activity along the gentle walk before settling down quietly right at the waters edge to await their arrival. While keeping an eye out for movement, Dan and Rachael shared their extensive knowledge on both Beavers and Scottish flora and fauna. Once the Beavers arrived we were able to move locations to keep up with them as we weren’t restricted to a hide, which provided a longer experience and more photo opportunities. This made it a more real and intimate experience with a small group right at the waters edge and as such was a real trip highlight.

    Both Dan and Rachael have a great passion and enthusiasm for the natural world which is infectious and on the drive home were still stopping to show Mountain Hares and Red Deer. Their worldwide in-depth knowledge in nature was also a real treat, discussing a variety of subjects and I would recommended them to anyone looking for a more genuine wildlife experience. I hope to be back to explore more of Scotland with them in future.” L. George, UK.

  • “Navigating the wildlife or the Highlands can be a hit and miss affair, not just because of the weather but also because you really need to know the very special spots to concentrate on. For this reason, and because we particularly wanted to see the special crossbills of the area, we decided to hire a professional guide for our first day in the Cairngorms (last week of May 2021). At the suggestion of a top-notch birding friend of ours, we contacted Dan Brown of Wild Discovery and agreed an itinerary and a very reasonable rate. In the event, Rachael came as well which was a real bonus.

    Thanks to their skills at hearing small, distant “chips” and knowing what birds were making them, we were able in our third location to get terrific views of a feeding family of Parrot Crossbills and in the next spot to find a similarly feeding family of Scottish Crossbills. Dan was super-fast at getting the ‘scope onto them for better views and helping us get through-the-scope photos of them with our mobile phones. These birds are only found in the UK in the Scottish Highlands, are few and far between and are tricky to identify.

    The weather wasn't too good, so we weren't able to climb to higher elevations – as we had hoped - but we also got great views of a Golden Eagle being mobbed by a Buzzard, Ring Ouzel, Black and Red Grouse, and lots more besides. We also had an interesting walk through part of the Balmoral Estate, with beautiful deer peering at us, and past stunning waterfalls.

    They also pointed out good places to go to on subsequent days in the Cairngorms for Dotterel, Ptarmigan and other specials.

    Dan and Rachael also knew so much about the insects and flora of the area as well as other wildlife. And besides being great naturalists, they were really friendly and interesting people to travel with.

    We were totally satisfied at the end of the day.” J. Clark, UK

  • “Our Pine Martin viewing evening was very special. Rachael & Dan are knowledgeable & we loved hearing about these beautiful creatures. Seeing them feed & interact so close to us is amazing. We were able to get many pictures capturing our time with the male, then female & kit so we can look back. Rachael & Dan kept us informed about the evening beforehand & were easy to communicate with. We look forward to booking another wildlife experience with them both.” P & T Stephens, Scotland

 

More time to explore?

Let us take care of everything on a behind the scenes, fully inclusive tour

 

Only a day to spare?

Check out our Deeside Days

 

Prefer the water?

Explore our small-ship expedition cruise options