Peter Cairns - Capercaillie, Scotland

The capercaillie is just one of those birds. There are others of course but the ‘caper’ just oozes attitude and charisma in equal measure. It is so much a part of Europe’s Wild Wonders that we just had to nail it. But capers are no easy bird to photograph - they are secretive, shy and live in the vast forests of the north.

So Wild Wonders hatched a plan. We sent several photographers to different locations to give us the best chance of cool caper shots - a kind of insurance plan. In my case ‘cool’ was exactly right, in fact during my mission, it got VERY cool - so cool my fingers could hardly operate the camera!

Capercaillie are especially rare in Scotland - this is the very edge of their breeding range and they’re in trouble here. No-one really knows why but for a while they were Britain’s fastest declining bird. Things are improving but the pressures on their natural habitat - pine forest in Scotland - are unrelenting.

Most photographers will complain about their luck - or lack of it. I’m one of those but from time to time, you do get lucky. This male capercaillie is a so-called ‘rogue’ - a male so charged, so aggressive, so intent on protecting his territory that he’ll attack anything he thinks is a threat - foxes, deer, cars and of course, photographers! Usually capers are difficult to get close to - this one was difficult to get away from! After two weeks, I had some shots I was happy with and some scars on my leg that I wasn’t so pleased about - just check out that monstrous bill!! Males will fight to the death if necessary - and there were times when I just saw that look in his eyes!

A male capercaillie in full display comes under the UNFORGETTABLE experiences in life. Several of our partners in Scandinavia run tours to see this magnificent bird - it’s a true Wild Wonder.

Peter Cairns / Wild Wonders of Europe

Please note that blogs reflect our photographers' opinions and not necessarily those of the directors of Wild Wonders of Europe.