THE screaming eagles around Loch Skeen in Sir Walter Scott’s Marmion have been silent for some centuries. Yet at the time of his writing, in the early 19th century, the Borders’ skies were still full of their cries. In 1800, there was a score of golden-eagle nests in Dumfries and Galloway alone, with six pairs in the hills around Moffat Water. Many place names in southern Scotland refer to the presence of eagles. Earn, the old English name for an eagle, and its derivations crop up, for example, in Earn’s Craig on Criffel; Bennyellary, or Hill of the Eagle, in Galloway; and Ern Cleuch—Eagle Gully—in Ayrshire.
Such a healthy population of hungry apex predators had consequences, of course. Lambs and other human food sources were gobbled up and a sea eagle that nested on an island in Loch Skeen was improbably reported to have ‘well-nigh carried off a shepherd’s boy. This attrition brought retribution against both types of an eagle and other raptors. ‘It is easy to see how such attitudes led to the persecution of eagles and other birds of prey,’ reflects Chris Rollie, a retired RSPB area manager, and historian of eagles in southern Scotland.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة August 25, 2021 من Country Life UK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة August 25, 2021 من Country Life UK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery