 |
| Presentations at Finzean House. |
The Heather Trust enjoyed
fantastic weather for its AGM and discussion meeting at Finzean Estate near
Banchory on the first of October.
Finzean was presented with the
Golden Plover Award in 2014, and the estate has a fantastic reputation for
modern, forward-thinking and integrated moorland management which encompasses
everything from grouse production and beef farming to forestry and capercaillie
conservation. The estate seemed like an
obvious choice for our AGM, and Finzean house was extremely welcoming for the
guests and delegates who arrived mid-morning for the presentations.
The Heather Trust usually
attracts a broad church of interested bodies, and this meeting was no
different. Land agents, scientists, conservationists and gamekeepers were all
in attendance, and this diversity of participation remains one of the Trust’s
key strengths.
Estate partner Andrew Farquharson
provided a useful overview of Finzean’s management, and after several questions
relating to the conservation aspects of the estate, the morning moved on to a
presentation by Dick Birnie, one of Scotland’s leading peat experts and
management consultants. Simon Thorp followed with a quick overview of the Trust’s
work across the U.K, and there was a lively discussion on a range of topics
before lunch, after which all were loaded up and driven to look at some of the forest
regeneration work on the estate.
There was a fascinating presentation
which looked at some of the theory and practice behind natural forest management,
and then another move up the hill to look at ground that is being specifically
managed for capercaillie, where targeted work aims to conserve birds in this
isolated Deeside pocket. The number of capercaillie at Finzean has risen and
fallen in recent years, but the population has remained relatively stable
despite harrowing declines elsewhere.
Discussion ranged from human
disturbance and predation to heather cutting techniques and the means of
conducting surveys for a bird that can be surprisingly elusive, despite its
size. The beautiful clarity of the day meant that the view was unobscured for
miles in all directions, and in accordance with the first day of October,
plumes of smoke rose up from neighbouring ground to suggest that the keepers
were taking advantage of the dry conditions.
We were delighted with the
turn-out and felt that the discussion meeting had been thoroughly useful. With
salmon plopping in the Feugh and the evening sun lighting up the distinctive
shape of Clachnaben, we could have hardly asked for a better day out.
