New figures released by Scottish Natural Heritage have added urgency to the John Muir Trust’s call for better protection of Scotland’s wild land. The ‘area without visual influence of built development’, one of Scottish Natural Heritage’s key indicators of the state of the Scottish environment, fell from 31 per cent in January 2008 to 28 per cent in December 2009. This drop represents an area around 14 times the size of Glasgow. Previous SNH figures showed the area without visual influence of built development had declined from 41 per cent to 31 per cent between 2002 and 2008. Helen McDade,…

A proposed extension to a wind development on the Isle of Lewis will further spoil one of Scotland’s most remote areas of wild land, according to conservation charity, the John Muir Trust (JMT) Visualisations prepared by the developer show some of the impact the full development will have on one of Scotland’s wildest areas. However, a key viewpoint from the summit of Uisinis, which would show the impact of the six-turbine extension, has not been fully examined due to health and safety reasons, according to the developer Crionaig Power. The JMT is objecting to the extension of the Muaitheabhal scheme,…

A new report by the UK’s nature conservation co-ordinator on hen harriers in the UK says that persecution is a significant factor limiting growth of the hen harrier population. The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) report, released today by Scottish Natural Heritage, considered scientific evidence on the distribution and nesting success of this bird of prey across all four home countries. Scientists writing the Hen Harrier Conservation Framework, to be published this Friday, looked at a range of factors affecting the distribution of hen harriers throughout the UK. The report’s authors looked at eight factors which could affect the hen…

When The National Trust for Scotland and the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh took steps to re-introduce rare upland ferns at the Trust’s Grey Mares Tail Nature Reserve two years ago, they did all the right things. And today, all 59 of the original plants are still alive and very healthy, and growing strong. Property Manager and naturalist Richard Clarkson said: “We’re delighted with the progress of the rare and diminutive Oblong Woodsia. We set up the project in partnership with the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh, where they grew the endangered species of upland ferns from samples in its…

Fife Police are investigating the suspected poisoning of a buzzard, reports the Fife Partnership against Wildlife Crime, which includes Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH). The raptor was found by a member of the public close to Lewes Wood on the Montquhanie Estate near Cupar. Fife Police has confirmed that the bird has been sent for post-mortem examination to confirm the cause of death and identify the nature of any poison that may have been used. PC Ian Laing, Wildlife and Environmental Crime Co-ordinator, said: “Fortunately, Fife has not experienced raptor poisoning as much as other areas, but this case is a…