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1st June 11-4
Open Garden in Inchnadamph with refreshments in aid of Macmillan -it will be signposted from the main road. An opportunity to plant a young Elm tree, collect other tree seeds and lots of other activities for all the family.

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LONG-AWAITED NEWS!
PLANS FOR PERMANENT POST OFFICE FOR ULLAPOOL FOR FULL-TIME SERVICE
• Permanent plans for Post Office in Ullapool
• Full-time service likely to begin in September
• 50.5 hours of Post Office service a week
• Temp Mobile Post Office for Ullapool will continue in mean time
Ullapool Post Office is to re-open at a new location ­ – Tesco Superstore, Latheron Lane, Ullapool, Ross-Shire, IV26 2XB.
This will restore a full-time Post Office to the area after the temporary closure of the branch at the village hall since March.
A part-time Mobile Post Office service has been operating in Ullapool every Monday from 9.30am – 1.30pm, whilst we worked towards a permanent solution.
The new opening hours for Ullapool Post Office at Tesco Superstore would be: Monday, Wednesday and Friday: 9am – 5.30pm; Tuesday and Thursday: 9am – 8pm; Saturday: 9.30am – 12.30pm.
This will provide 50 hours and 30 minutes of Post Office service a week for the convenience of customers.
We are planning to open the new branch in September 2024. The precise date is to be confirmed and the Mobile Post Office is due to operate until then. Another alternative branch is:
• Achiltibuie Post Office, Achiltibuie, Ullapool, IV26 2YG (open, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday: 9am – 12.30pm.
We are keen to restore this branch to the area as soon as possible, so we have decided to go ahead with our plans.
The opportunity to give feedback will close on 14 June. Customers can share their views during the consultation online at postofficeviews.co.uk with the branch code 323840.
Submissions can also be made via email to comments@postoffice.co.uk, by post to Freepost YOUR COMMENTS, or by telephone 03452 66 01 15 or Textphone 03457 22 33 55.
Issued by:
Post Office Press Office, 20 Finsbury Street LONDON, EC2Y 9AQ
Tel: 07436 038445 or 020 7012 3456 (24 hours), Email: pressoffice@postoffice.co.uk www.postoffice.co.uk

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MORE GOOD NEWS!
As a Member of Lochbroom Community Council I can inform the people of Ullapool, that having been in consultation with members of the Highland Council, they have agreed to run the 09:00 hrs bus service through D & E coaches on an experimental basis during the school holidays.
The service will run on Mondays to Thursdays on the same basis as is in place at present. It will be reviewed to ascertain whether the service will remain or be discontinued. Please use this service to try and make the council keep the service running into the future. Tony Oulton
See No.61 summer hol

 

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ANNAT BAYWATCH

Since starting back on the Shearwater, we’ve had great weather (apart from some fog that made it almost impossible
to see anything one day) and mixed wildlife.
A large number of puffin were about for the first two weeks – most ever seen inside and around the Summer Isles – and hearing similar from up at KLB. They seem to have headed off now. Guillemots scattered about, razor bill and Great Northern Divers. The Artic Terns return in small groups over 4 or 5 days but now seem back established on the Skerries and south side of Tanera Mor (please avoid landing and walking on these beaches as they really do get freaked and are nesting on the ground). White Tailed Sea Eagles being a bit confusing – we’re sure they aren’t on either of the Annat nests but are in the area so still trying to decide if they have shifted nest or just not bred successfully this year. Carlos is back working on Sea Scape at the end of the week so hopefully his Iberian Eagle Eyes might help us figure out what’s going on. Are seeing others, including a juvenile, quite regularly all around the coast and isles. Although the humpback whale that washed in was sad, it is providing a good source of (very smelly) food for all the birds out there, and eagles are in about it quite often too.
We also had a pilot whale incident a few weeks ago – had been reported at Coigach but turned up near Loch Ewe. A remote spot 4 miles from the road so we headed out on Mada-Chuain and one of the Tanera boats mobilised too. They arrived before us and saw it refloat itself so everyone stood down at sea but kept an eye out on the coast. Sadly, it came in again and died on Firemore Beach. SMASS analysis suggesting was natural and old age. Great to have Tanera help – not sure who was aboard but Tanera’s position and boat is ideal for this sort of stuff.
Porpoise have been quite quiet as yet, and mainly in small groups.
The sea is starting to warm a bit and seeing some plankton – though sea still very clear in other areas. Heartening sand eels being seen, and perhaps why the start of this week we got a surprise encounter with some Bottlenose Dolphin. Not a regular visitor but we did get a pod this time last year and wonder if these are the same ones. Initially 6 out by Horse Island/Badentarbet – very big males that came in alongside and interacted. We have been taking out groups from a school in Edinburgh so they got a right treat. Heading in, got a call from Louis who was fishing near Isle Martin and said he had some Common Dolphin so we took a look by. Thought we’d found them but was another group of about 12 Bottlenose! Slightly smaller and we think females and juvenile. Strangely enough, after exchanging video clips with him, it turned out he had actually had Common Dolphins! They were in almost the same place but we’d missed them. Is only the 3rd times I’ve seen Bottlenose, and this was certainly the closest as not far from Rhue. Not heard many incidents of Bottlenose and Common mixing either so a great day.
Have heard some Orca being seen both out west and in the Minch, and also up on the north coast. Crew on one of the luggers heading for Tanera reported a Minke too and have had a couple of suspicious distant glimpses of something bigger than dolphin and suspect might be Minke.
New pontoons really helping us on the Shearwater, and also Mada-Chuain and Sea Savers. Managed some more all-access trips – even had Maymie Mackenzie and Kate Rettie driving the boat! Jenny Scobie joined us for a wee trip round the loch too and helped show that light weight wheelchairs are ok off the pontoon. We’ve been checking out the new slip by the sailing club too and think it may help with heavier wheelchairs – hoping to trial something this week and have more feedback on that soon.
We’ve had a few nestlings out on the ground too soon. Rooks are being found a lot at the moment and some of them were out in the sun and getting little help from adults so we uplifted some and got them to Jane over at Highland Wildlife Rescue in Brora. Also, a wheatear (thanks Gordon) that has now been released after a bit of a stun. 3 baby chaffinches came in from the golf course (that’s Struan) and are doing well. Work is making it hard to have the time to drive over to Brora but have managed to relay to Dingwall and Ledmore to pass some on. Any help when this happens is really appreciated. Shout if you see any birds in trouble – they may be ok but always worth checking as some species more vulnerable that others and we can check in with Jane if need advice.
Sadly another otter killed on the road at head of the loch. We initially thought it was pregnant but now think it had given birth. We searched for kits but no joy. Hoping for some new signs for the stretch where it happened as is third time in same spot.
Our Plankton day at the Ulluminate/Lugger fest didn’t get huge numbers but those that did come along got to see copepod, crab larvae and other plankton, thanks to help from Laura Bush. We now have two microscope sets too if any other groups want to borrow. If you are seeing lots of stuff floating in the harbour basin, we did worry it might be churned oil but the microscopes allowed us to check it out and it turns out to be pine tree pollen.
Well done to all involved in both festivals. Was great seeing so much life and activity on the front and the harbour. Hopefully will happen again.
Noel
query@macraemedia.com
Facebook: 1stNoel, UllapoolSeaSavers, ShearwaterCruises, UllapoolFishing Twitter: SaversSea, UllapoolQueen
Insta (still trying…!): ShearwaterCruises

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WARNING FROM ASSYNT FIELD CLUB —- Trichomonosis
Over the last few days, we have received numerous reports of dying birds. Most casualties appear to be greenfinches, but twite, goldfinch and chaffinch have also been affected. We believe the cause is a disease, Trichomonosis, which chiefly affects the finch family.
Trichomonosis is a disease caused by a parasite, and typically causes disease at the back of the throat and in the gullet. Affected birds show signs of general illness (lethargy, fluffed-up plumage) and may show difficulty in swallowing or laboured breathing. Transmission is most likely to be through contaminated food or water, e.g. where a bird with difficulty swallowing regurgitates food that is then eaten by another individual. Please note that Trichomonas gallinae is a parasite of birds and does not pose a health risk to humans or their mammalian pets.
If you have bird feeders in your garden, we would urge you to clean them thoroughly. Suitable disinfectants that can be used include a weak solution of domestic bleach or other specially-designed commercial products.
Carefully rinse all surfaces with clean water and air dry before using. Clean your feeders outside and maintain careful personal hygiene, including wearing gloves and making sure that brushes and buckets are not used for other purposes, as some diseases can affect human and domestic animal health. Rotate positions of feeders in the garden to prevent the build up of contamination in any one area of ground below the feeders.
If you see birds of any species that you suspect may be affected by disease in your garden, particularly if you see multiple sick or dead birds, we recommend that you stop feeding for at least two weeks in order to encourage birds to disperse, thereby reducing the chance of birds infecting each other at your feeding stations. Only reintroduce feeding as long as you are no longer seeing birds with signs of disease, and closely watch for any further signs. If you see further signs of disease, once again stop feeding.
We also recommend leaving bird baths empty until no further sick or dead birds are seen.
If you wish to report dead or diseased birds to the BTO, details can be found here https://www.bto.org/our- science/projects/garden-wildlife-health
We saw evidence of this disease in Assynt several years ago, but had received no recent reports, and were pleased to see the greenfinch numbers had started to increase. However, it looks like it is back. Please help us prevent the spread.
Many thanks Assynt Field Club