The picturesque Italian village of Pettorano sul Gizio is one of Europe’s first Bear Smart Communities – part of a movement that began in Canada in response to rising human-bear encounters.Here in…
In 2018, former Scottish Cabinet Secretary Fergus Ewing declared that the reintroduction of lynx to Scotland would happen "over my dead body."Seven years later, in 2025, First Minister John Swinney…
Grouse shooting, sheep farming and predator control are all deeply embedded in the fabric of the British countryside. These practices, like many forms of land and wildlife management, are defended –…
At first glance, Scotland’s ‘deer problem’ appears to be an ecological issue: too many hungry mouths putting pressure on already depleted woodlands and peatlands.Beneath the surface, however, debates…
Britain’s woodlands and grasslands were once shaped by vast herds of wild cattle — the now-extinct aurochs. But in a Dutch laboratory, scientists have brought these powerful herbivores back to life —…
Wild boar are making a quiet comeback — not just in our landscapes, but in our conversations too.Attempts to hold boar captive in farms have repeatedly failed and today, pockets of these prolific…
“People like you don’t understand the countryside.”It’s a sentence that ends conversations before they even begin.When it comes to disagreements on issues such as hunting, farming, rural tradition or…
In August 2025, a farmer from the Outer Hebrides in Scotland, claimed that sea eagles had taken five of his Shetland pony foals.Whether this happened—or could happen at all—remains unproven, but the…
Almost wherever they roam, wolves attract controversy.Today, Europe is home to more wolves than at any point in modern history, and although the UK remains a wolf-free zone, their growing presence on…
The UK has lost more of its wildlife than almost any other country. So, for some, the return of sea eagles, beavers, wild boar and pine martens is a rare and uplifting conservation triumph. For…
