The Finzean AGM

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.