Estate

CNPA Board agrees to take the lead in bringing beavers to the Park

The Cairngorms National Park Authority (CNPA) has committed to taking a lead role in bringing Eurasian beavers to the Park, working with partners to restore a ‘lost’ species.

Eurasian beavers have European Protected Species status and the Scottish Government is supporting translocations as a proactive measure to establish beavers outside of their current range. As a result of this, the CNPA has been considering its role in bringing them to a suitable location in the Park.

At a recent board meeting, a range of options were outlined to members in terms of the CNPA’s role in facilitating the Scottish Government policy to actively expand the beaver population in Scotland.

Members were asked to consider what level of involvement the CNPA should adopt regarding any potential project going forward. Following an in depth discussion, the board decided on a proactive approach, wishing to take on a lead role in the process, including managing the application, delivery, mitigation support and monitoring, working alongside a range of partners.

Recommending this approach to board members, the CNPA’s Head of Conservation, Dr Sarah Henshall said: “As an organisation we are well positioned to take a leadership role and have in place the Cairngorms Beaver group to provide input to this project. The Park Authority already undertakes a huge amount of conservation work throughout the Park and is therefore well placed to have the right conversations with land managers, communities and organisations as we develop this work.

“The role of the National Park Authority is to coordinate the management of the Park area and to ensure that the aims are collectively achieved. A reintroduction of a species to the Park is exactly the sort of issue the CNPA was created to lead on. We have an opportunity to deliver an exemplar approach here, bringing together organisations and individuals and joining up the conservation, land management, community, research and business interests.”

However, Dr Henshall did stress that the CNPA’s approach will be collaborative: “We will be doing work around supporting land managers and owners, as well as communities, over the coming year to be well informed and prepared for living with beaver, prior to any application being made to NatureScot.”

estate DM Hall markets rural property with 32 acres of grazing outside Dollar for offers over £645,000

A substantial bungalow, stables and land extending to 32.46 acres (13.14ha) with outstanding panoramic views at Muckhart has been brought to market by Baird Lumsden, the rural property arm of DM Hall at offers over £645,000.

The property, with 4 bedrooms and 3 reception rooms, forms an established smallholding amidst highly appealing surroundings. Alongside the bungalow sits a well-maintained stable block.

The property also boasts a sufficient area of land suitable for a range of uses including equestrian, livestock and, potentially, planting purposes. There is also underlying development potential.

Jennifer Campbell, Head of Rural Property at Baird Lumsden, said: “This is a stunning opportunity for those who aspire to rural family life, with wonderful countryside walks and cycle routes to be enjoyed from the doorstep.

“Ochilview Muckhart provides a peaceful and private location yet one with easy access to the central motorway network. There is a village primary school and golf course at the end of the road, as well, of course, as development potential, subject to obtaining the necessary consents.

“Anyone interested in this property, which is on the market at offers over £645,000 should contact me at Baird Lumsden on 01786 833 800 or atJennifer.campbell@dmhall. co.uk.”

Promising results from mountain hare survey

Joint news release issued by NatureScot, the British Trust for Ornithology, the Mammal Society, the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust and the James Hutton Institute.

An innovative survey of Scotlands mountain hares involving volunteer citizen scientists has been hailed as a success in a new report published today.

Last year, hillwalkers, bird and mammal surveyors and other outdoor enthusiasts took part in a novel on-the-ground national survey, recording sightings using a free smartphone app called Mammal Mapper when out and about, to shed more light on the distribution and numbers of the charismatic animals.

Mountain hares are Scotland’s only native hare and an important species in the Scottish hills. They are classed as Near Threatened in Scotland on the UK Red List of Mammal Species, and were given full protection in Scotland in March 2021.

The Volunteer Mountain Hare Survey project aimed to gather more accurate information to better inform conservation efforts.

A total of 66 volunteers surveyed 1,465 km using the app. The species was recorded from some new areas, such as near Loch Ewe in the North West Highlands, in addition to many sightings from its previously known strongholds in Scotland.

The report highlights areas where the survey approach and technology could be improved, which will guide refinements for this year’s survey.

The project is a partnership of NatureScot, the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), the Mammal Society, the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust and the James Hutton Institute.

It builds on previous work to develop suitable counting methods in the mountain hare’s core range and seeks to complement these other counts to allow improved monitoring of mountain hares across their range in Scotland. The hope is that the survey will in due course transition to an on-going annual monitoring scheme.

Frazer Coomber, Science Officer for the Mammal Society has said “When compared with previous years, the Volunteer Mountain Hare Survey, has significantly increased the Mammal Mapper App's survey coverage in Scotland.

“Since the inception of this citizen science survey we have seen a substantial increase in the number of mountain hare sightings reported through the app and these records are continuing to be submitted – a big thank you to all those who submit their sightings.”

Rob Raynor, a mammal specialist at NatureScot, said: “The results from this innovative citizen science survey are really promising, with lots of volunteers getting involved to help achieve better coverage than previous surveys.

“Improving the information we have on mountain hare populations is crucial so that we can protect and conserve this much-loved species, so we’re hugely grateful to all those who took part. We hope that many more volunteers will sign up to get involved this year to help this project go from strength to strength.”

Mark Wilson, senior research ecologist at British Trust for Ornithology, said: "We were delighted at the levels of involvement from existing BTO volunteers, many of whom already give generously of their time to other wildlife surveys.

“As well as recording mountain hares, these volunteers surveyed a range of other mammal and bird species, often in remote upland areas where there has been little previous wildlife recording. This highlights the potential of the Volunteer Mountain Hare Survey to contribute useful information on a range of datadeficient upland species.”

For more information about the survey see: www.bto.org/ mountain-hares

Houses let via tenanted farms require bespoke legislative solutions

Regulating houses let as part of agricultural holdings through private rented sector legislation instead could lead to intractable problems for farming businesses, Scottish Land & Estates said today.

The rural business organisation held its annual conference in Edinburgh today, with a focus on rural Scotland’s housing stock.

The Scottish Government has signalled its intention to bring homes within agricultural tenancies into greater line with the regulation and operation of the social and private rented housing sectors.

SLE said it fully supported the need for the quality of homes to be improved but that bespoke rural solutions were required rather than a one-size fits all approach more suited to urban settings. The organisation said regulation should be incorporated into an Agricultural Holdings Bill rather than an ill-advised attempt to bring the sector into a future Housing Bill. Sarah-Jane Laing, chief executive of SLE, said: “We support the broad effort to improve the standard of housing stock on tenanted farms where