In a significant policy step, Argaty Red Kites in Perthshire has been granted Scotland’s first edge-of-range beaver translocation licence. Argaty, a working farm which is home to the award-winning red kite project, has been awarded a licence by the Scottish Government’s nature agency NatureScot for the release of two families and one pair of beavers, without the need for enclosure fencing. The beavers will be relocated from areas of prime agricultural land in Tayside where lethal control licences have been issued. They will be released on selected ponds at Argaty later this year, supported by the charity Beaver Trust. The…

On a warm dark night this summer, I found myself sat next to a glowing bright white ball in the garden, sunglasses over my eyes, watching moths of all sizes disappear into a big black box. Yes, I was getting eaten alive by mozzies and midges but I really didn’t care, because this was one of the undisputed wildlife highlights of my life. That might strike you as odd, given moths’ underwhelming reputation, but bear with me! Until relatively recently I have no memory whatsoever of peering closely at a moth or even being remotely motivated to do so. What…

Following the lifting of most statutory restrictions and with the agreement of bothy owners, the Mountain Bothies Association has announced that the bothies they maintain in Scotland and Wales reopen for responsible use from Monday 9th August. Bothies in England reopened on 19 July following the lifting of restrictions there. MBA Chairman, Simon Birch, said: “Since the start of the Covid 19 pandemic, we have adopted the position that our shelters are closed and we would like to thank all those responsible MBA members and the general public who have complied with that request. “Covid-19 has not gone away and…