Tiree, Gunna and Coll
Uists and Benbecula
Swans
Ducks
14.The Machair Islands
Tiree and the Uists
The Monach Isles
Machair—a Natural Heritage
15.Rum—an Island Nature Reserve
The Volcano
The Forest
Red Deer
Sea Eagles
16.St Kilda—Island of World Heritage
The St Kildans
Rock of Ages
Home of the West Wind
Seabirds of St Kilda
Wrens and Mice
Feral sheep—Soays and Blackfaces
Part III: Islands and People
17.Naturalists and Historians
16th and 17th Centuries
18th and 19th Centuries
First Half of the 20th Century
Second Half of the 20th Century
18.Land Use—Tryst of Man and Nature
Land Use History
Agricultural Improvement
Forestry
Minerals
Ores
Silica
Aggregates, Slates and Block Stone
19.Fisheries and Fish Farming
Fishery History
Demersal and Pelagic Fish
Shellfish
Fish Farming
20.Nature Conservation
Biological Sites
Coastal
Uplands
Woodland
Inland Waters
Peatland and Bogs
Geological Sites
Lewisian, Torridonian, Moine
Mesozoic
Tertiary
Marine Conservation
Nature Reserves
Protected Species
About the Publisher
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WINDSOR CASTLE |
It might be said that enthusiasm is the mother of creation. There is no doubt at all about the enthusiasm of the Boyd family for the Hebrides, and it shows in every line of this splendid book that they have created. Having sailed and cruised in Hebridean waters for many years and having acquired an interest in birds, I can quite understand the fascination of that very beautiful part of the world for those with a consuming passion for natural history.
If I had not already been involved in conservation through the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), I would have been converted by the changes I have witnessed in the Hebrides over the last twenty years. Plastic flotsam and oil pollution on most of the beaches, the decline in seabird populations and the intensity of commercial fishing reflect what is happening almost everywhere in the world.
I am sure that this book will become essential reading for all students of the Hebrides, and I believe that it will become a ‘bench mark’ for all those who are interested in the natural history of the islands in the future. It will provide an invaluable means of assessing any further degradation of the area, as well as making it possible to measure the success of any conservation efforts.
The Northern and Western Isles of Britain have long drawn the attention of naturalists by reason of their distinct landscapes and their exceptionally interesting communities of animals and plants. Added to this is the attraction of distant islands, with their own cultures and histories, and with climates subject to the severities of the North Atlantic ocean. The New Naturalist Series recognised this interest in the publication of Fraser Darling’s Natural History in the Highlands and Islands in 1947, a book which received acclaim from the wide audience of those generally or especially interested in the wildlife of Britain. More recently, the series has published The Natural History
