Millionaire turning back the clock on Scotland's wild past
A millionaire philanthropist is set to turn his 23,000 working Highland estate into a 'Jurrasic Park' type ecological game reserve, by re-introducing species of animals and plants that once lived wild on the land around 2000 years ago. Paul Lister has just been granted a dangerous wild animal license which means that he will soon have animals such as lynx, bears, wolves and wild boar running around his Alladale estate. He also hopes to re-introduce Caledonian Pine, hazel, and round birch trees. He has dreamed of turning his land back over to these once native species for years, and with the help from other local landowners he has already planted over 250,000 indigenous trees as part of the project.
Posted by Elisa Smith on August 14, 2007 10:00 AM
in Events and happenings| Green News| Outdoors & games
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Timor-Lest (formerly East Timor), which has only been an independent nation for five years, has announced its first National Park. It will ensure that many endangered species, not found anywhere else on the planet, will be protected. Timor-Lest became independent in 2002 and despite the fact it has a rich supply of oil and gas it is still one of the poorest nations in the world. The Nino Konis Santana National Park, which is over 123,600 hectares, includes over 25 bird species restricted to Timor and neighbouring island. It is also home to the yellow-crested cockatoo which is critically endangered due to an unsustainable exploitation for trade.
Have you ever been out on a country walk, or on a trip to the beach and wondered if any of the flora and fauna around you is edible? Ofcourse a lot of it is, and this book - 'Food For Free' by Richard Mabey can guide you through it. The book was first written back in 1972, and has been re-printed over 11 times, most recently in April 2007. It's split into seasons and includes sections such as 'Roots', 'Green vegetables', 'Herbs' and 'Flowers', and each section has field ID notes, illustrations and photographs, to ensure you don't pick up and taste something you're not supposed to. 
This week is National Parks Week, a celebration of (you guessed it) our 
You may have missed the fact that yesterday was World Ranger Day. A celebration of the men and women who devote their lives to protecting nature and the environment all across the world. I have a vested interest, as I volunteer with the East Lothian Countryside Rangers, and I can certainly vouch for the sterling work they do. Last night a film documenting the work of the world's rangers - 
