Although the countryside is traditionally considered to be the best place to view wildlife, the town of Ellon also hosts a large variety of animals and birds. Many of these are very common, such as the robins, black birds and chaffinches that visit the gardens but there are also some more unusual creatures including buzzards and foxes.
The river Ythan hosts an abundance of creatures from the ever popular mallard duck to the lesser known coots and moorhens. Ellon also provides a home for two endangered species - the Red Squirrel, which was abundant all over Britain until the introduction of the grey squirrel by the Victorians, and the Song Thrush, a small bird around the size of a blackbird which feeds on snails by cracking their shells open on rocks.
The Ythan Estuary and Forvie Sands can be found just to the north of the village of Newburgh. There is a small car park to the right immediately after crossing the bridge. Forvie Sands is host to the largest mainland collection of breeding eider duck in Britain, with up to 4,000 nesting from April to June. It is also home to many other species of coastal animals and birds including many species of terns, shell ducks and grey seals.
The Stevenson Forvie Centre located just out of Collieston and owned by Scottish Natural Heritage offers an audio and visual presentation and is the starting point for many walks across the Forvie Sands Reserve.
