Bounded by the Tay and Eden estuaries, the vast expanse of Tentsmuir Forest in north-east of Fife is incredibly rich in wildlife. The interlinking network of paths through the forest makes it an excellent place for a day’s walk, and this combined with its many open clearings and coastal location conspires to produce a diverse and exciting range of flora and fauna.

Scots and Corsican pine are the typical tree species here, but there are numerous patches of broad-leaved trees too. The coastal fringe is home to Tentsmuir Point National Nature Reserve, which features offshore sand banks and dune systems that are home to seals, geese, wading birds and flowers such as the northern marsh orchid and seaside centaury.

The forest can be accessed from the northern beach entrance at Tayport, but my favourite approach is from
the south, starting at the Forest Enterprise carpark at Kinshaldy near Leuchars. There is a plentiful choice of routes to choose from, but the ‘yellow’ waymarked four mile circular trail is as good as any and provides a fine insight into the nature of the wood.

It won’t be long before you notice bat boxes in the trees on the right hand side of the path. These are there to encourage one of the more unusual mammals to be found here – the natterer’s bat. This bat is very local in Scotland and Tentsmuir is a stronghold for the species. It is larger than the more ubiquitous pipistrelle and at Tentsmuir tends to feed high in the forest canopy, rather than in open clearings as one might expect. A research project is currently underway at Tentsmuir testing different designs of bat box to assess the types most favoured by the bats.

Look out too for roe deer, which are common in the forest and can often be seen along the wooded margins. Other typical mammal species found here include red squirrel, with grey squirrels occurring on some of the broad-leaved woodland fringes.

As one would expect from such a large pine forest, conifer loving birds such as crossbill and siskin are both frequent. Its coastal location makes Tentsmuir the first stop for migrants coming over from Scandinavia in the autumn, and in some years, particularly when the pine cone crop has failed in northern Europe, large influxes of crossbills will make their landfall here, before dispersing to other pinewoods throughout Scotland.

Siskins are dainty little birds and are often seen flying in small groups as they feed high among the tree tops. The male in particular is extremely colourful, but it is usually difficult to see these birds close enough to fully appreciate them.

Another speciality of Tentsmuir is the green woodpecker, its familiar yodelling call often being heard echoing throughout the forest. Green woodpeckers were hardly recorded in Scotland at all until the mid-1950s, but have gradually spread since then and are now locally common in many parts of the country. They feed on the ground much more than the smaller great-spotted woodpecker, which also occurs here.

At one time Tenstmuir held a population of capercaillies, a bird more normally associated with the Highlands of Scotland, however they have long since died out here.

As you progress along the yellow route you will eventually come across on old ice house. Built in the 19th century to store locally caught salmon, ice was taken here from ships in Tayport harbour, with some also being locally supplied from nearby ponds. Today, the ice house is also home to a colony of natterer’s bats.

Shortly after the ice house, the track veers to the left as it begins to loop its way back to the carpark. The forest opens out here and this is a good place to see tree pipits – dowdy little birds which are much more patchy in their distribution in Scotland compared with its close cousin, the meadow pipit.
A good variety of flowers occur along the path edges. Birds-foot trefoil, tormentil, yellow rattle, common vetch and sorrel are common. Creeping lady’s-tresses – an interesting although rather unspectacular orchid - are found throughout the wood beneath the Scots and Corsican pines. Drainage ditches and ponds in the forest are home to marsh marigold and support frogs, toads and palmate newts.

The sheer size of Tenstmuir means that it can take a long time to get to know the various aspects of the forest, and this is where much of its appeal lies. The broad sweep of Tentsmuir Sands is never far away and any trip to the forest should always include a quick sojourn to the open and empty beach, where in many instances you will only have the seals for company.