A photograph which VisitScotland claimed was of the Cairngorms has been removed from its website after it emerged it was taken in Argyll.

The shot, labelled Aviemore and the Cairngorms, showed trees outlined against a misty background with snowy peaks soaring above them.

It was part of the website for the Perfect Day promotional competition run by the official tourist agency.

VisitScotland described the gaffe as an "honest mistake".

The picture sparked puzzlement and debate among outdoor enthusiasts who were trying to spot which mountain it showed.

Cairngorm ecology expert Dr Adam Watson spotted straight away that it was not taken on his home turf and suggested that it had been taken in the Bridge of Orchy area.

VisitScotland has now admitted he was right and confirmed the snap was taken at Loch Tulla, just outside Bridge of Orchy.

Dr Watson said the error was "ridiculous" and expressed his surprise that an attractive image of the Cairngorm area had not been found.

He said: "It just obviously wasn't in the Cairngorms. I know these hills very well, I've been going there since I was a boy and I wrote the Scottish Mountaineering Club's district guide to the Cairngorms. It definitely wasn't the Cairngorms.

"Anyone can make a mistake but it's surprising that a body like that would not find it easy to find good photographs of the Cairngorms."

'Unfortunate incident'

VisitScotland's Helen Campbell told BBC Radio Scotland's Newsdrive programme: "It was an honest mistake.

"As soon as we were made aware of the error we took immediate action to rectify it by replacing it with the image that's up now on the site of Loch Morlich with the Cairngorms in the background."

She added: "We have a great bank of photos available to use. The shot was provided by an agency and we request an image or images from a large bank of shots which are available to us.

"As a result of this error, we are looking at our processes of image selection, reviewing this and attempting to prevent this type of unfortunate incident from repeating itself."