A week in the life: a Scottish country vet

Few people really know what the life of a country vet actually looks like. From going out on site, visiting clients and pioneering forward-thinking research, no day is the same. We go behind the scenes with gamebird vet Dr Matthew Balfour, from St David’s Game Bird Services in Scotland, who takes us through a week…

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The big picture: Pheasant feather art with Clare Brownlow

You don’t have to be an art lover to recognise the work of Clare Brownlow.  Since 2010 she has been making a name for herself with her incredible creations – all made with pheasant feathers. Her instrument of choice helps her capture the character, movement and colour of her wildlife subjects, unlike many people will…

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Call for action after final Wild Isles episode

THE Marine Conservation Society (MCS) is calling on viewers to take action following tonight’s final episode of the BBC’s Wild Isles programme. The five-part documentary series, which was presented by Sir David Attenborough, has featured wildlife from throughout the UK and Ireland. Tonight’s final show profiled creatures living in the seas surrounding Scotland and the…

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Scots want ‘wilder’ national parks

A MAJORITY of Scots want our national parks to be “wilder”, according to a survey by the Scottish Rewilding Alliance. An opinion poll conducted by market research agency Survation found that 74% of Scots agreed with a call to make national parks wilder, while 6% were opposed to the idea. In February, NatureScot – the…

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Bluebell wood freed from Rhododendron bushes

VOLUNTEERS from the Kinclaven Woodland Working Group are celebrating the eradication of the final Rhododendron ponticum bush at Kinclaven Bluebell Wood in Perthshire. Over the last four years, the team of 50 has worked to reduce a thick mass of the plant, spending nearly 2,000 hours on the task. The plant had claimed more than…

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TV’s Miranda Krestovnikoff headlines Scottish Marine Fest

TELEVISION presenter Miranda Krestovnikoff has been unveiled as the star act at this year’s Scottish Marine Fest. Krestovnikof, who rose to fame as one of the presenters on the BBC series Coast, will open the festival on 8 June. The five-day programme runs at the Scottish Seabird Centre in North Berwick until 12 June. Other events…

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Loch of the Lowes ospreys return on same day

BOTH breeding ospreys at the Scottish Wildlife Trust’s (SWT’s) Loch of the Lowes nature reserve in Perthshire have arrived back on the same day for the first time. Female NC0 arrived on the nest at 7.43am today, followed by male LM12 at 1.43pm. The SWT’s Perthshire ranger, Sara Rasmussen, said: “This is the earliest NC0…

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Mother’s Day: business as usual on farm

MUMS throughout Scotland might be putting their feet up on Mother’s Day – but not farmer Shona Duncan. Shona and her daughters – Rebecca, 24, and Sally, 22 – will be out on Sunday looking after their livestock and their glamping pods at Duncan Family Farms near Loch Lomond. “Mother’s Day is typically more chaotic…

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Dogs Trust celebrates fostering scheme

THE Dogs Trust is celebrating the work done by its forster carers to look after rescue dogs. Some dogs are not suited to life in kennels, and so the trust places them in a foster home through its “Home from Home” fostering scheme. The trust said that foster carers play a major role in helping…

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