The Scottish Government has approved the building of a large-scale wind farm in the Monadhliath hills south west of Loch Ness. Developer, Renewable Energy Systems (RES) have been given permission to construct 33 turbines, 120 metres high, at Dunmaglass, just south of Farr, and about 15 miles south of Inverness. The Dunmaglass estate is owned by property developer Sir Jack Arnold Hayward, former chairman of Wolverhampton Wanderers listed by the Sunday Times as the 125th richest person in Britain, and is popular as a shooting estate. The wind farm plans have been controversial from the start, with objections from the…

A bird walk on 30 December, led by Scottish Natural Heritage staff, will showcase the winter spectacles on offer at the Loch Leven national nature reserve. Winter is a surprisingly good time to see some fascinating bird life at the Loch Leven reserve. The pink-footed geese congregating often steal the limelight from the many other impressive wildfowl, including teal, wigeon, pintail and pochard. And there are also winter migrants off the loch to see in action: large flocks of fieldfare and redwing, having travelled south from Scandinavia, and waxwing may appear in variable numbers each winter to feed on the…

The recent snowfall has caused chaos in many parts of the country but at Scottish Natural Heritage's (SNH) Tentsmuir National Nature Reserve, snow has had a revealing effect. The white stuff is perfect for following the, sometimes shocking, behaviour of our winter wildlife. With frozen water and snow covering some foodstuffs animals are forced to get out when they can and travel longer distances, even if it means doing so in daylight for more nocturnal animals, to fight for their meals. Some animals are also out looking for mates and this also increases the chances of alert, well wrapped up…