Image via Pexels
 
Everything Moms and Dads Need to Know About Nature-Deficit Disorder
 
You might not have heard of Nature Deficit Disorder until just now, but you’re probably well aware of the fact that most of us don’t spend a lot of time outside these days. While technology has improved our lives in many ways, it’s important to not let nature get left behind. Today, this article presented by Rewild Scotland shares some tips and resources to help your family avoid this cultural epidemic.
 
Teach Children About Rewilding
 
Teaching children about rewilding introduces them to the concept of restoring natural ecosystems to their original state, which can have significant educational and environmental benefits. This knowledge fosters a deeper understanding of biodiversity and the interdependent relationships within ecosystems. By learning about rewilding, children become aware of the importance of conservation efforts and the role humans play in impacting and repairing natural environments. Such education encourages a sense of responsibility and stewardship towards the planet, inspiring the next generation to participate in or advocate for ecological restoration projects. Moreover, this exposure can cultivate a lasting appreciation for the natural world, promoting outdoor activities and environmental mindfulness from a young age. If you have any questions, contact Rewild Scotland!
 
Understanding the Problem
 
Nature deficit disorder (NDD) is a term coined by author Richard Louv in his book "Last Child in the Woods" to describe a societal trend where people, particularly children, are spending less time in natural environments and more time indoors or engaged with electronic devices. This phenomenon is associated with a range of physical, mental, and emotional health issues. 
 
A growing body of research suggests that reduced exposure to nature can lead to increased stress, anxiety, depression, and attention disorders. Additionally, it may contribute to a disconnect from the natural world and a diminished sense of environmental stewardship. Addressing NDD involves encouraging more outdoor activities, promoting environmental education, and fostering a deeper connection between individuals and the natural world to improve overall well-being.
 
Get Outside with Your Kids
 
Engaging in outdoor activities with your child not only fosters a healthy lifestyle but also strengthens your bond. Taking a walk around the block is an excellent way to explore and appreciate the nature in your neighborhood while incorporating some additional physical activity. You can turn it into a fun learning experience by identifying different types of plants and animals you encounter. 
 
Another great activity is having a picnic in the local park, where you and your child can enjoy fresh air and outdoor games. These simple yet fulfilling activities are perfect for creating lasting memories and encouraging a love for the outdoors in your child.
 
Try Fishing
 
Fishing can do wonders for children. It provides an opportunity to connect with the natural world, fostering an appreciation for aquatic ecosystems and wildlife. Fishing also encourages patience and concentration as kids wait for a bite, teaching them important life skills. 
 
Additionally, it can strengthen family bonds and create lasting memories through shared outdoor experiences. As children learn to handle fishing equipment and practice catch-and-release ethics, they gain a sense of responsibility and respect for the environment. Overall, fishing offers a fun and educational way for children to unwind, learn about aquatic life, and develop valuable life skills. 
 
Cook Together
 
Cooking together as a family offers a unique opportunity for children to connect with nature and understand the origins of their food. When parents involve their kids in selecting and preparing dishes made from fresh, natural ingredients, it cultivates an appreciation for the earth's bounty. This process can include activities like growing herbs or vegetables at home, visiting farmers' markets, or choosing seasonal produce, which highlight where food comes from and the effort it takes to cultivate it. These experiences teach children about the natural cycles of growth and the importance of sustainable practices. Moreover, cooking with natural ingredients can foster a lifelong preference for healthier, more environmentally conscious eating habits.
 
The Benefits of Birdwatching
 
Birdwatching offers numerous benefits for children. It encourages them to explore the outdoors and develop an appreciation for nature and wildlife. Through this activity, kids can enhance their observational skills, patience, and attention to detail as they identify different bird species and learn about their behaviors and habitats. 
 
Birdwatching promotes a sense of wonder and curiosity, sparking an interest in biology and ecology. Additionally, it provides an opportunity for quiet, mindful moments in nature, which can help reduce stress and anxiety while fostering a lifelong connection to the natural world.
 
Teach Your Children About Gardening
 
Gardening is a great activity for children. It offers hands-on learning experiences that teach them about plant life cycles, ecosystems, and the importance of nurturing living organisms. Gardening encourages responsibility as kids care for their plants, helping them develop patience and a sense of accomplishment as they witness their efforts result in growth and blooming. 
 
This outdoor activity promotes physical activity, connecting children with nature and reducing screen time. Moreover, it fosters creativity as they design their garden spaces and choose plants. Gardening can also instill valuable life skills like teamwork, problem-solving, and an appreciation for the environment, creating a lifelong passion for nature and sustainable living.
 
Something else to bear in mind: if your home needs some landscaping work in order to make it better-suited for a garden, there’s an additional benefit: these types of renovations also raise your home’s overall value! That can be a big help down the road, if and when you decide to sell your home and move. Just make sure you keep those receipts.
 
In Case You Need an Incentive
 
Getting outside can significantly help children reduce stress. Nature provides a soothing and calming environment that contrasts with the often overstimulating indoor world. Outdoor activities like playing in green spaces, hiking, or simply spending time in natural settings can reduce cortisol levels (a stress hormone) and promote relaxation. 
 
The sights and sounds of nature, from birdsong to rustling leaves, have a calming effect, while physical activity in the outdoors releases endorphins, which are natural mood enhancers. Furthermore, being in nature encourages mindfulness and a break from screen time, allowing children to disconnect from stressors and recharge mentally and emotionally.


Venturing into the great outdoors offers an enjoyable and fulfilling experience for the entire family, serving as a perfect blend of fun, adventure, and learning. The benefits of such outdoor excursions are extensive, positively impacting both adults and children in various aspects of health and well-being. Not only does it provide an excellent opportunity for physical exercise, but it also fosters mental health by reducing stress and enhancing mood. Furthermore, engaging with nature enhances cognitive development in children and promotes creativity and imagination. 
 
Time spent in natural settings also strengthens family bonds, creating shared memories and experiences that are cherished for a lifetime. So make a plan to step outside, explore the beauty of nature, and indulge in playful activities today. It's a simple yet powerful way to enrich your lives and well-being.
 
Rewild Scotland is here to share information on Rewilding, Habitat Restoration, Biodiversity, and more. We look forward to hearing from you!

More from Adam Taylor at  taylorandnoel.com 
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Adding water to your garden is the single best thing you can do for wildlife. This pond has reeds, yellow flag iris and marsh marigold all native and so important for our wildlife. There are also native plants underwater too. https://www.watersidenursery.co.uk/shop

Doesn't have to big a massive pond. I also have a Belfast sink. Which looks great and is teeming with tadpoles.

Our children were growing, and my husband were looking for an activity we could all do, as a family. We had enjoyed several activities run by the RSPB and other conservation organisations during holidays: pond-dipping, visiting an Osprey nest nearby, a Ranger-led night walk listening out for bats.

​‘Why don’t you volunteer for the RSPB’ one of the activity leaders suggested. ‘We’re looking to establish a new group for Wildlife Explorers in this area. Are you in?’

We thought it through. A monthly commitment did not feel too burdensome, and it gave us the chance to ring birds, make our local area more wildlife friendly and to meet like-minded people who felt as strongly about the environment and our natural world as we did. As members, we could also access reserves ( a fantastic perk which we made full use of).

​It was a balance – as a teacher I am used to planning and structuring and being in control of my environment. As wildlife explorer leaders, however, we were outside a lot, waiting for wildlife to show up, so my whole control-freak mindset had to go – it was about working as a team, keeping young people safe, but retaining the flexibility to go with whatever happened.

Family holidays were the same. All parents have agendas when it comes to bringing up their young people. We wanted ours to be considerate, have morals, have manners, be readers – and to connect with the wild world around them. 
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We headed to places like Harris, Islay, Iona and, most often, Skye. We camped in Sutherland and self-catered up and down the west coast, throwing in the odd hill amongst hours of paddling and rock-pooling. And it was on one of these holidays that we saw our first eyrie – a Golden Eagle soaring and plummeting, and then feeding a chick – it was a faraway ledge, but thanks to a fellow enthusiast’s telescope we saw it. Our children saw it too - and were hooked. Peregrine falcon hunting off the rock cliffs a few hundred yards along the path, seals bobbing in the bay, a waterfall gushing onto the beach: this is where we wanted to be. Wild places are good for the soul! Puffins, burrowing into the soft machair, huge numbers of migrating geese soar into the sky as one, the thrill of spotting a lone seal and, from an elevated place, watching its graceful dance beneath the surface against the reflected golden sand of the seabed as we did in Assynt. I remember being in the company of youngsters for all of these.

​Positive though these memories are, the wilderness also inspires a healthy respect. There is a certain mind-menace to an untamed landscape in the darkness, the unpredictable power of the sea and to rivers in spate. Being divebombed by gulls for inadvertently getting too close to their nests (this happened on Islay, but also most scarily on Handa Island where Artic Skuas made the lot of us run for cover). 

Every single experience and memory mentioned has fed into Wilderness Wars. 
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Of course, it is a story first and foremost, not designed primarily to educate or inform (although I hope that, too, is one of its strengths). There are plenty of ‘learn about nature’ books for children, and many of them fill the shelves in our home.

​No, Wilderness Wars is a dramatic life and death showdown, imagining a natural world able to wage war when defending itself against invasion by thoughtless profiteering developers. It’s not a book about plastic waste or climate change – you can’t cover it all, I realised – but it challenges young readers to value our wild places for what they are, and to think twice about thoughtlessly imposing our will on them. On the surface, it would feel as if nature itself is the enemy, but of course this is not the case – nature in Wilderness Wars only rises up in defence, not in needless aggression. Even my young 12-year-old heroine realises the tension:  the grandeur of the wilderness which we appreciate in awestruck wonder, and the danger of disrespecting or underestimating the power of it. The book questions the arrogance and short-sightedness with which we do damage, without thinking about the long-term consequences for other species than ourselves. 

What if nature fights back?

Tell a young person you are going to teach them something? Cue resistance, or yawns at best.

But invite them to lose themselves in a tale of life and death, a battle against a formidable adversary, flashes of the supernatural and an epic, brave adventure in a race against time? 
​
My hope is that they’ll be in.

Dr Jason Gilchrist is an ecologist and lecturer at Edinburgh Napier University.
www.jasongilchrist.co.uk

In October 2017 I attended a biodiversity conference (Spotlight on Scotland’s Biodiversity at the Royal Society of Edinburgh, tweet) and the launch of the 51 Best Places to see Scotland’s Geology (via the Scottish Geodiversity Forum, at Our Dynamic Earth, tweet). Whilst they were independent events, they are united by a common theme. The landscape.

Perhaps.

I say perhaps for a number of reasons. The growth in population is likely to be very uneven across the world. Africa’s population will more than double for example, while some European countries may see a fall. There is also likely to be large movements of people as ecosystems in some places collapse due to the effects of climate change and what might be called ‘natural capital asset stripping’. But there are two trends that could give some comfort to all those hoping there will still be corners of the earth, and of Britain, which will remain wild, or even become rewilded.

The first is urbanisation. Currently, globally 54% of people live in urban areas, by 2050 this will be 66%. So whilst the world population is growing steadily, rural populations may drop in many areas, leading to land abandonment, which for many is closely related to rewilding.

The other big, potentially game-changing, trend is the emergence of so called ‘sustainable intensification’ in food production systems. I say food production systems rather than agriculture as whether we like it or not, the boom in smart mechanisation, new techniques for ‘growing’ protein and the application of synthetic biology could render many of our traditional agricultural systems economically marginal – even with the current levels of high, and highly distorting, rates of public subsidies paid to farmers.
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These trends are critical to understand in any debate on rewilding. People have used land for food production, hunting and foraging for centuries on almost every corner of earth. We may now be facing the prospect that a combination of urbanisation and technology will start of reverse this trend, at least in some places. Ironically, the big driver for re-wilding may well not be environmental policy per se, but the forces of capitalism, however one may feel about the pros and cons of our current prevailing economic system.

I’m to an extent playing Devil’s Advocate here. Even the best futurologists would admit it’s difficult to predict what impact – for good or ill – these global mega-trends will have on our ecosystems, and there are many variables. Will these new technologies be acceptable to society? What will the future demand for red meat and other high-ecological-impact foods be?

But let’s be optimistic for a moment and say that re-wilding might well be possible, even on a planet with 10 billion plus people.

That partly answers the question: is re-wilding realistic? I’d now like to try and answer the question ‘why’ before coming on to the ‘how’.

The rationale for re-wilding cuts to the heart of why the nature conservation movement exists in the first place. Many, but not all, humans have an empathy with nature - they inherently feel a sense of responsibility to care for other species for their intrinsic value. It remains a moot point as to whether this is an altruistic act, or whether our motivation is to receive some spiritual or psychological benefit from doing so. And if ‘biophilia’ really exists, then perhaps we are all genetically hard-wired to respect nature anyway.

But what about those in our ‘tribes’ that don’t much care for nature? Those who’ll happily destroy a species or habitat for personal gain? The uncomfortable truth is we are those people – 99% of those in the audience today will have a mobile phone in their pockets with metals mined out of large holes in the ground by Glencore or Rio Tinto or BHP Billiton. Quite a few of us here eat red meat more times in the week that is good for our own health, never mind the health of the planet. If we find it hard to change, how can we persuade the average Minister in government - dreaming every night about how to grow GDP - to create the conditions for re-wilding to become reality?

The fact is, to have any chance of seeing re-wilding happen on the scale required to reverse biodiversity loss, we need to marshal other arguments, and not just, and I stress the not just, rely on the ‘it’s morally the right thing to do’ line. We need to convince our elected representatives to legislate effectively so that corporations and landowners cannot continue to generate private profits by running up a massive natural capital debt which they have no intention of repaying.

This means spelling out the full gamut of benefits which will come from re-wilding. For example, in those areas where farming is economically marginal, we need to provide opportunities for farmers to diversify into new businesses based on eco-tourism, perhaps using some of the 3.5 billion euros provided to farmers in the UK every year under the Common Agricultural Policy.

We also need to make visible all those other benefits of nature currently invisible in economic decision making including; flood mitigation, carbon sequestration and storage in peatlands and woodlands, improvements in water quality and the protection of species and genetic diversity on which we depend for our medicines, materials and new breeds and strains of crops. None of this negates or conflicts with the need for the moral case. Both cases are needed and absolutely should be made.

​So what about the ‘how’? How should we go about re-wilding and what should, or could, re-wilded landscapes look like?

The Scottish Wildlife Trust’s vision is for ‘healthy, resilient ecosystems across large areas of Scotland’s, land and seas’. This could be thought of as a re-wilding vision although I appreciate definitions of the term vary considerably. At the Trust, we are already putting this vision into action through our Living Landscape projects, the largest of which is Coigach-Assynt Living Landscape Programme (CALL), a 50 year partnership project in north-west Scotland to restore the ecosystem health of the area but, equally as importantly, to generate socio-economic benefits for local communities. One of the indicators of the success of the project is whether the local schools are still open and alive with children in 50 years.

The CALL project area is around 60,000 hectares involving eight adjacent landowning partners, two of which are environmental charities, two community-owned holdings and four private estates. We think this model of working towards shared goals over the long-term is a very practical way of achieving good outcomes for the environment and the community. The Scottish Wildlife Trust’s ground-breaking Scottish Beaver Trial took the same approach; the trial simply would not have been the success it was had we not meaningfully connected the project with the community and local livelihoods.

And that’s the message I’d like to end on. At the Scottish Wildlife Trust we want to see ecosystem health restored across large areas of Scotland, including the return of extinct keystone species such as the Eurasian lynx. I’m comfortable with calling this mission re-wilding in certain contexts, so long as there is a place for people. As I’ve said before, the ‘Living’ in Living Landscapes includes people, not just wildlife. And I’d add we are not just talking about Gore-Tex clad walkers rambling in the landscape, I’m talking about people living and working in these landscapes in a way which is compatible with year on year improvements in ecosystem health; soil, water, biodiversity and natural processes. That might include low-intensity extensive farming (after all wood pasture is one of the rarest and richest habitats in the UK – and it’s nothing if not anthropogenic), it might, or perhaps must, include hunting and fishing.
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The trick to bringing people with us is to combine ecological recovery with economic vitality. It can be done, indeed we’ve made a good start, the challenge now is scaling it up so we once again see Atlantic woodlands stretching uninterrupted from the Mull of Kintyre to Sandwood Bay, or the drained and plantation-scarred Flow Country returned to its rightful place as a great boggy wilderness of northern Scotland.

This is a transcript of a speech Jonathan Hughes gave to an Earthwatch organised debate on re-wilding in 2014 at the Royal Geographical Society in London. He has kindly given me permission to reproduce it here.
 

​In the first in a series of stunning conservation books, SCOTLAND: The Big Picture has teamed up with Cairngorms photographer Neil McIntyre who has spent the last 20 years documenting the lives of his local red squirrels, deep in the heart of one of Scotland’s largest remaining fragments of Caledonian Pine Forest.

Red squirrels here are prospering but because Scotland’s forests have become fragmented and squirrels can’t cross open ground, they’ve become imprisoned on islands of trees, unable to recolonize their natural range. In this book, the charismatic squirrel is but a messenger; they are an animal tied to the trees and to secure their future, Scotland’s forest fragments need expanding and just as importantly, joining up to allow red squirrels the freedom to roam.

Here Neil describes how he has been able to capture the jaw-dropping images in this book through an understanding of the inter-dependency between his beloved red squirrels and their forest home.

What is it about this intriguing little creature that captures the hearts of so many people? Sometimes that can be hard to define. My very first memories of seeing a red squirrel when I was a small boy are now vague, yet those fleeting glimpses ignited a passion that burns bright to this day.

When my father moved to a new job near Aviemore, in what is now the Cairngorms National Park, sightings became more regular as this is red squirrel heartland. Living over a mile from the main road, I had to cycle each morning to catch the school bus and it was during this daily commute along a wooded lane that I would catch a glimpse of a red flash – or occasionally, a closer, more prolonged view as a squirrel peeped around a tree, almost teasing me into a challenge to find out more. I grew accustomed to these exchanges and started to spend time watching their mischievous
antics, sometimes becoming so absorbed I missed the school bus. As the years rolled by, my interest in red squirrels grew and slowly morphed into something of an addiction.

In early adulthood, my passion for wildlife photography began to emerge, and my thoughts immediately turned to the cheeky, charismatic small creature I had grown to love. I wanted to share with others my encounters with this forest sprite and my camera unlocked the door to their secret lives. It quickly became apparent, however, that whilst relying on chance encounters in the forest was fine for squirrel observation, it was pretty useless for achieving the in-depth images I was hoping for. After a few months I had only a handful of mediocre pictures to show for my efforts. I needed a new approach – and although it now seems completely obvious, I started to try and bring the squirrels to me. Food was clearly the answer. I chose a mixed woodland site just a couple oundred metres from home. With a glorious array of beech, oak and Scots pine, I could see the possibilities were endless, if only I could lure the squirrels to this spot.

By the end of day one, the food lay untouched. It was the same on day two. Then on day three every single hazelnut that I’d put out had vanished. Was it squirrels, or was it wood mice? I just couldn’t tell, as there were no shells left to examine. The next day a shell had been discarded onto a nearby beech stump. It was broken in half without a gnawed hole, the tell-tale sign of a mouse or vole. This was the work of a red squirrel. That same afternoon I set up a hide, and the next morning returned full of eager anticipation. I put out the food and entered the hide expecting a long wait. After just half an hour, I heard the distinctive scratching of a squirrel’s claws gripping a tree trunk as it descended to the ground. I could tell the squirrel was on the pine immediately behind my hide but then, in a flash, it was right in front of my camera, as it sat breaking a nut on an old decaying stump. I hardly dared breathe – but as the first squirrel relaxed, it was joined by another, and an hour later I had witnessed more red squirrel activity than in all the years I’d been watching them.

All this happened back in 1991. Now, many generations of red squirrels later, they still thrive in my local woods, and the daily feeding ritual continues. Over the years they have become so accustomed to me that I no longer need a hide. I can now move about without them reacting, almost becoming part of their secret world – and it is this level of acceptance, even trust, that has allowed me to capture the images in my new book. My intention over all these years has not necessarily been to reveal every facet of squirrel behaviour, but to capture their individual spirit and character. And – crucially – to show the connection between the squirrels and the woodland on which they depend.

A stroll through an old Caledonian pine forest fragment, amongst sturdy trunks and chaotic gnarled branches, where a red squirrel might scamper or sit motionless, tucked close to the mighty frame of an old granny pine, is an experience I never tire of. But these unique forests are now small, isolated and in some cases, dying. There is finally a will to expand and link these islands of woodland and to allow red squirrels to return by themselves to their former strongholds. More native woodland and more red squirrels is surely something worth striving for?

​I am very lucky to have squirrels as my neighbours and it is my hope that these images will bring you a sense of their personality, so that you too can feel a part of some of the special moments I have witnessed. What is it about red squirrels? They have become part of my everyday life and I would be lost without them. But – perhaps more than that – red squirrels and the forests in which they make their home represent what it is to be wild and free. What better way is there to live?



The Red Squirrel: A Future in the Forest is published by SCOTLAND: The Big Picture with images by Neil McIntyre and words from celebrated nature writer, Polly Pullar. The book can be ordered here: https://www.scotlandbigpicture.com/Store/books/the-red-squirrel-a-future-in-the-forest
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All images © Neil McIntyre/scotlandbigpicture.com

When I read the phrase “human wolf pack” I did a double take. I had to read the whole article again. Had I understood correctly? A charity about protecting trees was about to send a group of people out into the Scottish Highlands to act like wolves? I had to know more.
 
Project Wolf is a study run by Trees for Life, which aims to better understand the impact large predators like wolves would have on the deer population in Scotland. The “wolves” spend a month at the charity’s Dundreggan Conservation Estate in the Highlands, roaming the area at dusk and dawn in order to create a “landscape of disturbance” for the deer population. By moving the deer on, the charity hopes to stem overgrazing and to restore the native forest. 

Many reading this blog will already be aware of the trophic cascade theory, demonstrated in Yellowstone National Park by the reintroduction of wolves. This caused a domino effect on the whole ecosystem of the park to the extent that the formation of the rivers changed. So there is no doubt that wolves, as well as other animal species, have the potential to hugely impact rewilding efforts in Scotland.
 
It is not, however, quite as simple as it first appears.
 
Wolves may be able to alter whole landscapes - but humans already have. Despite the fact that wolves were once native and will contribute to restoring Scotland’s natural landscape, we also need to consider how they would adapt to the environment as it is now, after generations of change. Furthermore, there are many in Scotland who benefit from the landscape in its current state, and many people will be concerned for their livelihoods in either shooting sports or farming. The concerns of these influential voices in Scotland need to be considered.
 
There is also the cultural acceptance of wolves to consider. While the lynx has relatively few negative perceptions, the wolf has been particularly demonised. Fairytales tell us to beware of the big bad wolf from a young age - so it is not surprising that many worry over sharing a walk in the woods with one. ​

The reality is that wolf attacks on humans are very rare in regions where they already coexist, and that we are unlikely to come into common contact with them in the areas where they will thrive. This does not change the fact, though, that humans in the UK have not faced this concern in living memory, and YouTube videos of parents walking their children to school with axes are likely more striking than positive statistics to the vast majority. Yet it also causes public outrage here when areas where such videos are filmed want to cull their wolf population.
 
My last film, Red Sky on the Black Isle, focused on the plight of the red kite in Northern Scotland - a harmless creature to humans, game and livestock alike. The persecution of hen harriers - and even tourist-attracting eagles - is well documented. I have no desire to return wolves just to have them face the same fate.
 
Which brings me to the human element of Project wolf. Like most conservation issues, rewilding comes down to people. While many of us associate wolves with the villain in Red Riding Hood, myths and legends of humans transforming into wolves are common around the world, often with positive connotations. ​

​The wolf pack in Dundreggan will spend a month walking the woods in the footsteps of wolves. They will be afforded time to get closer to nature; an opportunity that most people either can't or don't make enough time for in their lives. In a time where healthcare practitioners are urging us to spend more time outdoors for both physical and mental health, and movements such as ‘forest bathing’ are coming into vogue, this also seems significant. It will be interesting to hear their insights into the experience.
 
If our society could rewild itself in this way, remind ourselves of the irreplaceable value of nature, maybe it would come a little higher on our list of priorities.
 
I would love to see wolves return to Scotland within my lifetime, for a lot of reasons, but only if we are ready to accept them. So how do we get there? By starting to speak about it now, by educating people, and by gathering research - just as Trees for Life are doing.
 
Wolves and other large predators are often seen as the pinnacle of rewilding efforts, not because they are the end goal but because they give greater scope to create functional ecosystems that allow us to step back and let nature manage itself.
 
So for me, Project Wolf is the perfect opportunity to talk about not only rewilding in terms of reintroducing animal species and of restoring landscapes - but also rewilding ourselves. 

Over the years I have been asked many questions. When people hear my accent for the first time it usually has the same effect and triggers their inquisitive side ‘’where are you from?’’ or ‘’that’s not a Scottish accent’’ are the favourite comments. For some reason it shocks people to find a renegade Yorkshireman living on the island of Mull and running boat trips to see the White Tailed Eagles. And I suppose I can see why, so let me tell you. When I first visited Mull as a young man in his twenties the very first breeding attempts for the eagles were just being made following the reintroduction programme which had started in 1975. Hunting and persecution had slowly and inexorably forced the last few of these magnificent birds to the furthest outposts of our islands where they were followed and exterminated. Thankfully as we progressed through the 20th century we began to miss these iconic and once revered birds and a plan to bring them back to their native home was hatched. The rest as they say is history but when I first visited Mull they were still extremely rare and knowledge of their whereabouts was a closely guarded secret.

When I eventually moved to Mull after falling head over heels in love with the island on that very first visit their presence was established and despite severe protestations from some quarters, they were here to stay. The first successful breeding season was in 1985 and since then the number of breeding pairs in the UK has increased year on year to the point where we reached 100 pairs on the 40th anniversary of their reintroduction. By any measure this would be a cause for celebration and it was heralded as a huge success by all those involved and rightly so too. It can never be easy though reintroducing an apex predator back into its previous home range. Whether right or wrong the birds were exterminated for a reason, and at that time it was supposed that they were a threat to humans and farm animals, especially lambs, who was to say that this wouldn’t be so with reintroduced birds. Well, thankfully as we progress as a species we have also learnt to look at the facts before making decisions (well some have!) Farmers in Norway where the young eaglets were imported from don’t have a problem with adult eagles taking lambs and the myths of eagles carrying infants off to their eyries was exactly that – just a myth. However as a race it seems we had soon forgotten how to live with these hungry birds as our neighbours. And the area into which these birds were being reintroduced had also changed, sometimes massively. Back in the early 21st century we boasted a massive fishing fleet both of offshore and inshore vessels and fish stocks weren’t even dented by our efforts. Farming here was mainly crofting and small scale subsistence farming, large scale hill farming of sheep wasn’t common. There were more people around, the recently abandoned villages we find and photograph are testament to that. There were no wind farms or mile after mile of deer fenced hills. The speed of vehicles on the single track roads would be 20mph at best and traffic rare, so how can we expect a species which has been absent for nearly 100 years to suddenly fit in with our modern methods and way of life? Well it has!

Those downy bewildered looking creatures which were so carefully brought from Norway by the RAF and looked after by a small group of dedicated people and eventually released into the wild sought out territories in which to build their nests and find mates from the few other sea eagles in this vast expanse of land and eventually raise young. They have adapted to the changed environment remarkably well even if they still have some of their inbuilt knowledge. They know if they see a flock of ravens or black backed gulls fighting on a hill side there will be something of interest for them too, so they go and investigate. Whether it is a dead rabbit from a buzzard kill or a lamb killed by a raven by pecking its eyes out at birth, to a white tailed eagle it is food and as the king of the skies it descends on the carcass and starts to feed. Of course the original owners of the carcass find this intrusion too much and try and chase the eagle away. After a while the eagle gets fed up and flies away, usually taking its stolen meal with it. So you can see how easy it would be to presume that every missing or dead lamb could be attributed to the eagles. The birds are far more likely to feed at a carcass or scavenge for their food than actively hunt prey themselves. Hunting is dangerous and expends lots of energy so why risk it, let another animal do all the hard work then go and steal its lunch. The birds also recognise that gulls following a fishing boat usually mean an easy meal of scraps or discarded fish. This was what gave the birds their common name of Sea Eagles as they were more commonly seen at sea than over land, principally because we had such a large fishing fleet back in the old days which would return to port each day cleaning the catch and throwing unwanted items overboard. This is exactly the inbred behaviour we utilised when we started our trips some 9 years ago. Of course now with the decline of fish stocks and the decimation of the local fishing fleet this is a practice that would not sustain a single bird let alone a population so wouldn’t ever be seen unless we re-created it on a daily basis.

So how might you ask do I fit in with this story of extermination, changing times and reintroduction? I have always been a fisherman, even for a short time a commercial fisherman catching crabs, prawns and lobsters. On one occasion I was fly fishing an inland loch for brown trout and catching small fish on a fairly regular basis. This was on a loch which the famous Skye and Frisa had their territory, and one of them happened to be flying past me as I caught a fish. I suddenly went from being an insignificant lump of flesh and bone to the centre of this Eagles attention. A sharp bank around and the eagle was flying directly towards me watching as I reeled in the wriggling trout. I was gobsmacked at how close this eagle came to me and how curious it was of my fishing actions. Relating this tale to our local RSPB officer is what got me to thinking that maybe there was more to this reaction than I had initially thought. And so a plan was formed, hastily at first but after lengthy consultations with the powers that be and all the proper consents, and by making sure that we would be doing everything correctly and putting the welfare of the birds first at all time we were ready to go. At first we weren’t really sure how things would work out and we kept our activities low key. But the local eagles which had been nesting in our area for some years were very quick to catch on to the regular sight of the blue boat approaching them up the loch and it must have triggered some distant genetic memory and associated our appearance with food. Gradually over the following years our mutual trust has grown and we have come to know these intelligent birds as individuals as they have come to know us. Now if neither Alex or I are on deck the birds will look in through the wheelhouse window to seek us out. They also recognise the difference between our boat and the local creel boats which only catch prawns so they don’t waste energy visiting boats where there is no chance of a free fish.

Over the years that I have lived on Mull I have seen the numbers of visitors increase year on year. Popular TV documentaries and personalities have raised the awareness of people to wildlife on a worldwide scale. When those people then find out that here on Mull we have resident the fourth largest eagle in the world (White Tailed Eagle) and Europe’s highest concentration of golden eagles together with hen harrier, short eared owls etc and a supporting cast of red deer, seals, otters and whales, then it is only a matter of time before they want to come and see them for themselves. Also digital photography has made capturing world class images within the reach of the ordinary person so photographers too want the best wildlife to photograph. All this together with Mulls wonderful scenery and laid back atmosphere has meant that Mull is so rightly considered the wildlife capital of the UK and draws in people from all over the world. I have been lucky that since my first visit to Mull all those years ago when white tailed eagles were so rare that I have seen their population grow and generate more and more interest and consequently generate a huge amount of income to a small Hebridean island over the intervening years. I suppose I have played my own small part as have so many others in making Mull the destination it now is and our B&B has a higher percentage of wildlife lovers than ever before. What we sincerely hope is that Mull doesn’t become a victim of its own success. While there is currently room for the annual influx of mostly well behaved visitors I would never want to see the island turned into a zoo or even a National Park. It is a unique environment where people and animals bump along now in relative harmony. There have been the odd instance of an eagle taking a lamb but farming practices are again adapting to having large predators about and help with indoor lambing is available to farmers who want it via government funded schemes. Sea and land based tour operators are plentiful and can help visitors greatly by saving them time looking for wildlife and educating them on how to observe or photograph wildlife in a responsible manner which is vital for the long term sustainability of Mull and its wildlife and those that depend on it. If I have a vision for the future it would be that all those living on this island appreciated just how much our wildlife means, not just as an income generator or a draw for visitors but as a long term resource that looked after properly will sustain our generations in years to come and provide joy to those that come to see it. Everyone on the island benefits from the increased number of ferries available in the summer time and many clubs and institutions benefit directly from the White tailed eagle watching hides run by a local partnerships including MICT, RSPB, SNH and local forest groups which support them financially on an annual basis. I am proud that my son has become the first and only dedicated otter guide on the island and now takes his clients to photograph these shy creatures, something that is extremely difficult without years of knowledge and practice. So if you ever wondered how a bloke with a Yorkshire accent came to be running eagle trips on Mull…….