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Scotland Outdoors

Shetland Sparrowhawks, Feral Pigs and an Art Deco Pavilion

Scotland Outdoors

BBC

Nature, Society & Culture, Science

4.7709 Ratings

🗓️ 2 March 2024

⏱️ 84 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Rachel heads to Fort Augustus for a chat with Cieran Watson from Forestry Land Scotland and Morag Milne from NatureScot about how they can manage the growing number of feral pigs living wild in the Scottish countryside.

Mark meets Niall MacLeod who is part of the Loch Awe National Park committee to chat about their bid for Loch Awe to be a contender for Scotland’s next National Park.

Over the winter, the Cairngorm Reindeers have been busy shedding their antlers. Rachel chats to one of the herders, Hen Robinson, to find out more about what they do with these antlers.

The Findhorn Watershed Initiative and the Findhorn, Nairn and Lossie Rivers Trust are working in collaboration to achieve healthier rivers in the Findhorn area. Mark meets Bob Lawton and Elle Adams to find out more.

Until a few years ago, there was only one bird of prey resident in Shetland – the peerie hawk, or merlin. But in twenty eighteen, the sparrowhawk made an appearance, and since then, they have been said to be rapidly colonising the islands. Huw Williams from BBC Radio Scotland hears from Logan Johnson from The Zetland Raptor Study Group about how they are keeping track of these birds.

Returning to National Parks, Mark meets with Nikki Sinclair from the Scottish National Parks Strategy Project to chat about the next steps in the project following the closing date for all submissions on Thursday 7th March.

Work is well underway to restore the Art Deco pavilion building at the outdoor Tarlair swimming pool in the north east. Later this year, the pavilion will open to the public as a café and community space. Pat Wain from Friends of Tarlair and Vincent Willox from the construction company carrying out the restoration show Rachel around the pavilion.

The fungal disease ash dieback is having a devastating effect on ash trees in Scotland and across Europe. As a result, thousands of mature trees have had to be felled for safety reasons. A project called Ash Rise have started using wood from felled ash to make new items for a touring exhibition. Mark meets various furniture makers who are responsible for choosing the wood at the Scottish Wood sawmill near Dunfermline.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Did you know that you can listen to many of your favourite podcasts first on BBC Sounds?

0:06.6

Like Desert Island Discs, where you can hear castaways like Cher, Gareth Southgate and Nick Cave,

0:12.7

and enjoy longer versions of the music they've picked. Good things come to those who don't wait.

0:18.7

Listen to your favourite podcasts first on BBC Sounds.

0:23.5

This Scotland Outdoors podcast from BBC Radio Scotland.

0:32.3

Hello and thank you very much for choosing to listen to this.

0:35.3

As you know, we build the Scotland Outlaws podcast

0:37.8

from the live program we do for BBC Radio Scotland,

0:40.4

which is called Out of Doors.

0:41.8

And this week we're discussing feral pigs,

0:44.5

and there's a growing number of them,

0:46.1

now living wild in the Scottish countryside.

0:52.2

Yesterday afternoon, the sun was shining, the birds were singing, it was warm.

0:56.1

You know, my daughter and I sat outside and had lunch in the square and Ellen, and it was lovely.

1:00.6

Today, I seem to be working with a bundle of clothes with a hat on top.

1:04.4

It's cold, it's damp.

1:06.3

And I don't blame her in the slightest. Good morning.

1:08.0

I'm Mark Stephen, sitting on the other side of the fire here at Beach Grove

1:10.8

and Aberdeen, Rachel Stewart. This will be

1:12.7

my attire until at least July.

1:14.8

That's beachware for you, isn't it? It is.

1:17.0

It is. I was in Highland Pursier yesterday and was thinking

...

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