Ornithologists are astounded over an unexpected new inhabitant who made the flight of a lifetime to an east coast island.
A red grouse has arrived on the Isle of May national nature reserve, the first of its species to be recorded on the island six miles from the coast.
Plump-bodied red grouse normally fly only short distances but it is thought the May grouse has flown almost 25 miles to set up camp among the tens of thousands of puffins on the small Forth island.
Reserve manager David Steel said its appearance was “remarkable”.
The game bird was snapped by a visiting photographer on Sunday and her shots have caused a stir on social media.
Already a handful of avian enthusiasts have sailed out to the island to catch a glimpse of the unprecedented sight.
David said: “We are used to seeing puffins and all the other seabirds here, to see a red grouse wandering around completely out of context is fantastic.”
No-one can explain why the female grouse has arrived on the island, but strong winds around the time of her arrival is reckoned to have aided her journey.
David said: “Red grouse are fairly sedentary, they live on upland moors and they don’t fly that far, a quarter of a mile at most.
“The closest breeding population is 40km (almost 25 miles) away in the Lammermuirs.
“When one of my colleagues told me about it, I thought she must have made a mistake.”
Island staff were alerted to the grouse by aviation photographer Gill Howie, of Squadron Prints.
She said: “Once home, I mentioned the grouse to a fellow bird photographer and he said it couldn’t be a grouse as there weren’t any on the island.
“I posted my photos on Facebook and Twitter and started to get messages from people everywhere.”