New Galloway to Clatteringshaws Road
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Part of the Watson Birds Trail
The road between New Galloway and Clatteringshaws Loch was one of Donald Watson’s top places to see barn owls. The rough grassland and pre-thicket forestry along the roadside provide excellent habitat for short-tailed field voles, their principal prey in Galloway. Dusk is the best time to see them and indeed is when this picture was set in 1981 with the barn owl looking ghostly white in the fading light. Black Craig (or Cairnsmore) of Dee and Benniguinea form the background hills, and the owls have a choice of nest boxes and other breeding sites nearby.
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NGR NX593774