Wildfire experts, scientists and the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service (SFRS) have joined forces with land managers to spell out the importance of muirburn as a conservation tool to protect Scotland’s precious peatland. February is the Month of Muirburn, with an insightful film and social media campaign from Scotland’s Regional Moorland Groups and the Scottish

A new training scheme to promote best practice in the use of muirburn has been backed by Scotland’s estates. Organised by Lantra and recognised by NatureScot, Scotland’s nature agency, the training course is designed for those who will take part in land management activities that use fire as a tool. Scottish Land & Estates, which

Rural organisations united today to urge the Scottish Government not to damage a ‘land use that is so vital to Scotland’ through its proposals to introduce a licensing scheme for grouse shooting. The Scottish Government’s public consultation on their forthcoming Wildlife Management (Grouse) Bill proposals ends tomorrow (Wednesday, December 14). A wave of individuals and

The grouse season ends today, 10th December, with land managers reporting a good season overall, providing a much-needed boost to the rural economy in Scotland. The country sports sector is worth over £350m annually to the Scottish economy and supports 11,000 full time jobs in rural areas. Grouse shooting is a significant driver of tourism

Sophie Clark (27) – is a trail-blazer in every sense of the word. She is Scotland’s first female lecturer in Gamekeeping, and is also a retained firefighter. “I grew up in the small harbour village of Kinlochbervie in the north west of Sutherland. It was and still is an idyllic place to live and the

Rural organisations said today the Scottish Government’s proposals to introduce a licensing scheme for grouse shooting must not jeopardise vital jobs and important conservation work in some of the country’s most fragile, rural areas. Following the announcement today by the Scottish Government of a public consultation on a forthcoming Wildlife Management (Grouse) Bill, a joint

Rural businesses today welcomed the Glorious 12th – the start of the grouse shooting season – and predicted a much-needed return of international visitors following the impact over two years of the Covid-19 pandemic. Among the first enthusiasts to take to the heather-clad moors were a shooting party on See Far Hill at Forneth Farm

Protest groups are ignorant of the reality of life in the countryside and the work farmers put into conservation JAMIE BLACKETT The start of the grouse shooting season on 12th August – the Glorious Twelfth  – is now an important fixture in the culture wars. When the fall of the Berlin Wall discredited communism in

Greater recognition is required for the crucial role preventative burning can play in limiting the risk of wildfires in Scotland, land managers said today. With the United Kingdom recording its hottest ever temperatures this week, wildfires wreaked havoc for fire crews in both rural and urban areas, with 440 wildfires reported across the UK. Scottish