Mike Dilger's British Wildlife Highlights of 2025

As a British naturalist, the joy of showing guests wildlife beyond their own doorstep remains, for me, a source of immense pleasure. Many choose to travel with Wildlife Worldwide for that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ogle at orangutans or track down tigers, but believe me, you haven’t lived until you’ve observed a Scottish otter or eyeballed both our native eagles!

2025, for me, was a year of trips spanning the length and breadth of our brilliant British Isles, and January always begins with a tour to what is surely England’s greatest wetland – the Somerset Levels. Based close by, in the gorgeous boutique accommodation of Worth House, we’re perfectly placed to take in the most celebrated starling murmuration in Northern Europe. But this trip is not just a ‘one-trick pony’, as the Levels in winter are also full to the brim with wildfowl and waders from across the Northern Hemisphere. If we’re lucky, we might even catch up with a rarity or two, such as the diminutive duo of little stint and least sandpiper. What a way to kickstart the year!

After a pause for applause, March saw me back with another willing group to my old stomping ground in the Scottish Highlands. Well known for an array of iconic animals, we linked up with a trio of divers and duos of both scoters and eagles, in addition to an impressive selection of the finest Speyside specialities. Surely the highlight of the trip, however, was sightings of all three of Britain’s lagomorphs in a single day! We revelled in seeing rabbit, brown hare and the rarest of the lot – the mountain hare, hunkered down in some hillside heather.

It was then back down to the Somerset Levels in May, with bitterns, cuckoos and a bucketload of warblers taking centre stage, before moving on to the beautiful South Coast, in the company of a full group and my good friend and co-leader, Ed Drewitt. Introduced to the roster of domestic trips in 2024, the South Coast Wildlife Extravaganza has quickly become a favourite with many, as we luxuriate in the opulent surroundings of the Grade I listed Warmwell House. Surely the most biodiverse of all my trips, this wonderful week sees us exploring woodland, heathland, grassland and islands in search of a frankly astonishing variety of wildlife. If you’ve never encountered great bustard, smooth snake or Dartford warbler, but would like to … well, this is the trip for you!

After popping back home briefly to remind my family who I am, it was then back up to Scotland for the double-whammy of Mull and Shetland. Surely one of our most popular destinations, Mull’s astonishing scenery is undoubtedly the best place in Britain for both eagles and otters. And in the company of my good friend and co-leader Alexa Kershaw, this terrific island has so much more to offer. The Treshnish Isles, for example, always deliver for puffins, while this year also saw us delight in the much sought-after trinity of short-eared owl, hen harrier and whinchat.

Carrying on upwards, Britain’s most northerly archipelago offers a range of wildlife you can't see anywhere else. With dramatic backdrops at every turn, the Shetland Isles aren't only the place to catch up with breeding storm petrels, red-necked phalaropes and great skuas, but also offer spectacular views of some of the finest seabird colonies.

While writing this, I’m preparing for another trip up to my second home – the Grant Arms in Speyside. Here, top of my wish-list will be crested tits and pine martens, which, if we manage to track down, will mean just one thing – Christmas will have come early to the Dilger household!

View all our wildlife holidays with Mike Dilger or our trips to the UK. You can also read Mike's blog on the highlights from his tours around the world in 2025 or to find out more about any of our trips contact our friendly team.