An adult humpback whale, possibly greater than 12 metres in length, has been sighted in the Firth of Clyde this week – the fifth such whale to be seen off western Scotland in the past month, compared with a usual total of just one or two per year. The whale was sighted off Tighnabruaich in the Kyles of Bute on 6 July. On 8 July it surfaced alongside the Scottish Ocean Youth Trust’s yacht, spouting and swimmingly strongly in a northward direction into Loch Fyne. The whale was observed breaching out of the water and lob-tailing – a dramatic manoeuvre…

The decision to turn down plans for a wind farm on the edge of the world-renowned Glen Affric area, west of the Great Glen, has been welcomed as “positive news” by the Mountaineering Council of Scotland and the John Muir Trust. The proposal, by German developers, wpd, would have led to the construction of six turbines, each 400 foot high, on the edge of one of Scotland’s most famous landscapes. The project was opposed by wild land charity the John Muir Trust, the Mountaineering Council of Scotland which represents Scotland’s hillwalkers and mountaineers, two local community councils and over 1,000…

Archaeologists working on the National Trust for Scotland’s Mar Lodge Estate in Aberdeenshire have uncovered evidence that people were active in this mountainous landscape thousands of years earlier than previously thought. There will be a public talk on the new discoveries on 21 July at Mar Lodge near Braemar, at 7pm. Excavations at sites deep in the Cairngorm glens have produced radiocarbon dates which demonstrate a human presence as far back as 8,100 BC, with some places being revisited over many thousands of years. The first evidence that hunter-gatherer groups were living in the Cairngorms was discovered on the Mar…

Wild land charity the John Muir Trust has been recognised by the Scotland’s Finest Woods Awards for its work to regenerate the woodland on its Li and Coire Dhorrcail property on Knoydart. Aileen McLeod MSP, Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform, presented the ‘New Native Woods Award’ to Lester Standen, John Muir Trust property manager for Knoydart, at the Royal Highland Show on Friday 19 June. The Scotland’s Finest Woods Awards celebrate the contribution that woodlands make to the environment and economic prosperity of Scotland and showcase how woods contribute to the health and well-being of Scottish people.…

A coalition of over 20 of Scotland’s environmental organisations including the National Trust and the RSPB, have written to Dr Aileen McLeod, Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform, calling for the Eurasian beaver to be fully reintroduced and recognised by the Scottish Government as a resident, native species in Scotland. The group’s action followed publication of the Scottish Natural Heritage Report which will inform Ministers making the decision on the future of beavers in Scotland. In addition, the collective calls for the building on the current wild populations in Mid Argyll and Tayside, and permission for further licensed…

The final report on the future of beavers in Scotland has been sent to the Scottish government, paving the way for a decision to be made on whether the existing colonies will be allowed to remain and expand. The ‘Beavers in Scotland’ report, published by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) is one of the most thorough assessments ever done for a species reintroduction proposal. It provides a comprehensive summary of existing knowledge about the likely impact of beavers living in the wild in Scotland and options for their management, and sets out four scenarios for Scottish Ministers to consider. These range…