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Scallops, Osprey and Corncrakes

Mark Stephen and Rory Crawford with stories from the great outdoors.

Earlier this month, the Scottish Government announced that it would commit to establishing a new National Park by the end of this parliament’s term. Several areas have been suggested as potential locations including Galloway, Glen Affric, Ben Nevis and more. This week Mark speaks to Sandra McDowell from the Galloway National Park Association to find out why Galloway should be given the honour.

Laura Guthrie is in Brechin to hear about a new memorial dedicated to the men and women who were punished and some even murdered, after being accused of witchcraft in the 17th century. Local historian George Mitchell tells her about that time.

In this week’s Scotland Outdoors podcast, Mark speaks to June Nelson who spent a year living on the Galapagos Islands in the 1960s with her ornithologist husband. We hear an excerpt where she talks about meeting Prince Philip the Duke of Edinburgh when he visited on the Royal Yacht Britannia.

During his recent trip to Knoydart, Mark headed out on a boat trip with Jayne Eddie from Western Isles Rib Adventures. They admire the amazing scenery and see what wildlife they can spot.

A new unusual technique for catching scallops has been accidentally developed by a Devon marine consultancy firm. They put small lights underwater to try to attract crabs into pots to make fishing for them more sustainable. But it was scallops that were more attracted to the lights. We chat live to one of those behind the discovery, Dr Rob Enever, to find out more.

This week’s co-presenter Rory Crawford goes in search of the corncrake, an extremely secretive bird that spends most of its time hiding in meadows and farmland.

Mark chats to the owners of the B&B he stayed in on Knoydart about how they came to the area from Switzerland and the challenges of living and working in such a remote area.

A breeding pair of Osprey have successfully hatched chicks near Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders. The pair returned to a man-made nest that was created because of the passion of birdwatcher Rosie Shields. Rosie joins us live to tell us more about the Borders Osprey over the past few years.

1 hour, 30 minutes

Last on

Sat 11 Jun 2022 06:30

Broadcast

  • Sat 11 Jun 2022 06:30

Landward

Landward

Scotland's farming and countryside programme