Next ADMG Regional Meeting
The next ADMG Regional Meeting will take place at the Birnam Arts and Conference Centre, Station Road, Birnam, By Dunkeld PH8 0DS on Wednesday 5 June from 11.00 – 13.00hrs. An agenda will be posted on the website nearer the time. If you would like to attend please advise Helen Polley Helen.polley@bidwells.co.uk
ADMG Chairman’s letter printed in The Times
Following an article in the Times Save peatlands from red deer urges charity head on 1 May 2019, a letter from Richard Cooke, ADMG Chairman, was printed in response. Here is his letter in full. The Times published a slightly abbreviated version on 3 May.
In reference to the article 'Save peatlands from red deer' in your 1 May issue, it has been fashionable since the 1990s among the environmental organisations to cast deer as the sole villain of the piece when it comes to discussing the condition of the Scottish Highlands and their rewilding aspirations. Certainly this was the line taken by Jonny Hughes in his previous role with Scottish Wildlife Trust. Let’s get up to date!
I fully acknowledge that grazing pressure over past decades was not sustainable, but a great deal has changed over recent years. Firstly, red deer numbers in the Highlands are most certainly less than the 700,000 to which your correspondent refers; indeed, that is a more realistic estimate for all deer, all species, over Scotland as a whole. The open hill red deer population is now reducing steadily to well under half that figure, as evidenced by the James Hutton Institute in its study for SNH last year, due to the concerted efforts of the Deer Management Groups. Furthermore, deer are not the only herbivores in the Highlands and sheep have been present in far greater numbers, although they too have reduced by a million since the millennium.
The Association of Deer Management Groups aspires, with many others, to regenerating woodlands along the lower slopes of our globally admired mountain landscapes. We also support the Scottish Government initiative to restore peatlands eroded by the actions of man and by weather over the centuries. Many Deer Management Groups are now actively involved in peatland restoration schemes and woodland expansion.
As in all things there is a balance to be struck and we see little value in a polarised argument as to whether Scotland should become an unmanaged wilderness or whether the land should be regarded purely as an economic resource. There is room for environmental enrichment alongside productive employment, and indeed responsible public access, and the deer sector for its part is committed to maintaining deer numbers at levels which support all those benefits.
Advance notice – GWCT Scottish Game Fair
This year the Scottish Game Fair runs from Friday 5 to Sunday 7 July in the grounds of Scone Palace, Perthshire. Come and find ADMG in the usual place. Don’t forget, one of the Fair’s highlights, the Fred Taylor Memorial Trophy for Working Hill Ponies, takes place on the Sunday.
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E-SCOPE is produced for the Association of Deer Management Groups by Playfair Walker.
