Campbell Laurie - Highlands: Scotlands Wild Heart

Dedication

To Lucy and John Lister-Kaye, my dear friends in the Highlands.

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This electronic edition published in 2016 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

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First published 2016

Text Stephen Moss, 2016

Photographs Laurie Campbell, 2016, with the exception of those listed on page 269

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ISBN: 978-1-4729-1900-7 (HB)

ISBN: 978-1-4729-1901-4 (PB)

ISBN: 978-1-4729-1902-1 (eBook)

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INTRODUCTION

Of all Britains wild places, surely none are so beautiful, so scenic, and so special as the Scottish Highlands. Stretching across hundreds of square miles, the exact definition of the region is hard to establish: it includes the Inner Hebrides, but not always the outer isles; Orkney, but definitely not Shetland; as well as the Cairngorm plateau, the valleys of Speyside and Deeside, the Flow Country, Ben Nevis, and the Great Glen.

But the Highlands are about far more than geography: they are also a state of mind. The very name speaks of wildness and wilderness, of towering mountains and deep glens, of fast-flowing rivers and rocky coasts, and above all, of some of Britains most extraordinary and spectacular plants and animals.

Not that Highland wildlife is always easy to see. The place gives up its secrets unwillingly at times, and effort, hard work and a fair amount of luck are needed to see some of the more elusive wild creatures. But what wild creatures! Golden Eagle and Bottlenose Dolphin, Pine Marten and Osprey, Reindeer and Red Deer, Black Grouse and Red Squirrel, Ptarmigan and Capercaillie, the Atlantic Salmon and the rare and well hidden Scottish Wildcat, are just a few of the iconic species found here, some found nowhere else in Britain. They are accompanied by a fabulous supporting cast of birds and mammals, reptiles and amphibians, butterflies and dragonflies and, during the spring and summer, stunning displays of wild flowers.

The Scottish Highlands change not just season by season but also day by day; but in this book I have chosen as in the accompanying BBC TV series to focus on the transformations that take place, slowly but surely, over the course of a calendar year. The book is divided into four seasons, each of which is a transition in itself: from winter to spring, spring to summer, summer into autumn and finally autumn back to winter, as the natural year comes full circle once again. It is a story of hardship and opportunity, of wonder and surprise, and above all of how nature finds a way in even the harshest of conditions.

In between the stories of the wild creatures that make their home in this glorious part of the world, there are profiles of some of the many people who have chosen to live alongside the wildlife here. They love the Highlands as, if you have already been here, you will easily understand. If you havent been yet, this book is an invitation to visit, and to experience the wonders of Scotlands wild heart for yourself. Youll be glad you did!

Stephen Moss

WINTER ON THE HIGH TOPS