Public asked to report rare hen harrier sightings

Female Hen Harrier - Scottish Natural Heritage

The public is being asked to report any hen harrier sightings this year by the ‘Heads Up for Harriers’ project group. Run by the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (PAW Scotland), this is one part of the effort to help rare hen harriers.

Hen harriers frequent many Scottish moors, where their acrobatic aerial courtship displays are a tell-tale sign of breeding activity. But their distribution and numbers are still restricted in some areas.

A number of causes, including illegal persecution, land use changes and predation, have resulted in a reduction in hen harrier numbers, to the point that the hen harrier is now one of Britain’s rarest birds of prey. In reality, however, many factors are likely to come

25th anniversary bid to extend Glen Affric woodlands towards Scotland’s west coast

Planted Scots pines at Athnamulloch 1

A quarter century of volunteering conservation action in the Highlands is being marked by Trees for Life this month, with a new initiative aiming to expand Scotland’s Caledonian Forest from Glen Affric towards the west coast.

The bid to restore life to deforested parts of the famous glen comes as the award-winning charity next week marks the 25^th anniversary of its acclaimed Conservation Weeks, in which volunteers from around the world carry out practical conservation action to protect Scotland’s natural environment.

Trees for Life’s Back to Our Roots appeal is seeking

Famous killer whale from 1977 never left the neighbourhood

Comet 02.09.2007      Copyright HWDT Genevieve Leaper

The true identity of a famous killer whale known as ‘Dopey Dick’ – who sparked widespread attention when he swam into Derry-Londonderry almost 40 years ago – has at last been identified, thanks to photographs published on social media.

The orca attracted headlines in November 1977, when he made his way up the River Foyle and into the city, apparently in pursuit of salmon, before remaining five kilometres upriver of Loch Foyle for two days. Incredulous at the sight and confused about the whale’s behaviour, locals dubbed him

A raccoon has been spotted in the wild near Garve in Ross-shire

Raccoon in the Blackwater river catchment area

This news release from Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) particularly caught my attention because recently while walking a wooded track to the south west of Inverness my path was crossed by a black Leopard like animal about the height of a medium sized dog. It makes one wonder what else is out there.

Raccoons have been identified in Scotland as one of the top 50 invasive, non-native species most likely to be introduced and cause negative impacts. They are currently kept as pets and zoo animals, and there have been several escapes in the last few years.

Raccoons are native to North America, where they are