There is a unique beauty in the moorland of the eastern T Highlands. Great, bare rounded hills swell up, the dark ground brightened by the purple of flowering heather. Queen Elizabeth II's Balmoral Estate in Aberdeenshire is at the heart of this landscape, rising up to the craggy 1,155m Lochnagar.
Walking these hills, you smell the essence of our uplands - peat, heather, a hint of charcoal - carried on a brisk south-westerly breeze, clouds sailing by in a wide sky. But if the Wild Card campaign group - backed by celebrity naturalist Chris Packham - has its way, this landscape will change beyond recognition. Caledonian pine and birch will spread high up the hillsides, montane scrub will overtake much of the heather, and bare peat will be covered in vegetation.
The 20,600-hectare Balmoral Estate is the prime target of those trying to persuade the Royal Family to rewild its land. It's the largest single estate owned by the family, bought by Queen Victoria in 1852. Her husband Prince Albert's enthusiasm for grouse shooting and deer stalking at Balmoral started a trend, leading to the creation of many more grouse moors. The result was wildlife devastation, with records from the time showing some large estates had hundreds of birds of prey and other predators killed annually to save grouse for the guns. Moors were burned so fresh heather would feed the game birds. A large deer population for stalking also suppressed tree growth, leading to today's bare hills.
Some big estates in the Cairngorms are already rewilding. In Glen Feshie since 2006, Danish billionaire i Anders Holch Povlsen has caused a stir by drastically reducing deer numbers to boost woodland growth. On Mar Lodge Estate, a near-neighbour of Balmoral, the National Trust for Scotland has an extensive programme of deer culling, tree planting and natural regeneration. Rewilding campaigners believe many more will follow if the royals take a lead.
Denne historien er fra June 2022-utgaven av BBC Countryfile Magazine.
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Denne historien er fra June 2022-utgaven av BBC Countryfile Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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We Are an Island Nation - So Let's Protect Our Seas - Living in the UK makes us islanders and personally I'm proud of that definition - not in any political or jingoistic sense, but simply because I love the sea and in this country we are totally surrounded by it.
Living in the UK makes us islanders and personally I'm proud of that definition - not in any political or jingoistic sense, but simply because I love the sea and in this country we are totally surrounded by it. We live inside thousands of miles of coastline, in a nation whose borders were created by nature and made us what we are.
Discover Jurassic Coast - With its towering cliffs, sweeping beaches and pretty seaside towns, the shoreline of Dorset and east Devon is spectacular.
With its towering cliffs, sweeping beaches and pretty seaside towns, the shoreline of Dorset and east Devon is spectacular. Jo Caird fossicks for fossils and dramatic rock formations. It's an auspicious start to my journey along the Jurassic Coast. This 95-mile stretch of shore mostly in Dorset, but nudging just into east Devon - is blessed with awe-inspiring geological formations and fossil deposits that have garnered it recognition as England's only natural UNESCO World Heritage Site. Snaking east from Orcombe Point near Exmouth to Old Harry Rocks near Swanage, it's studded with monumental rock arches, seemingly endless shingle beaches and fossil beds from which treasures were prised that altered our understanding of prehistory.
Viking shores
We picture Vikings marauding coastal settlements, looting and raiding. But what was life really like in the Viking Age? Historian Eleanor Barraclough reveals what the ancient artefacts found on Britain's shores tell us about our formidable forebears
Sea horses
On Cornwall's coastal clifftops, Melanie O'Shea meets the hardy grazing ponies that are helping to restore the land, so nature can flourish once more
A wing and a prayer
From their desks at Boulmer, 1,000 RAF personnel watch the skies for airborne threats to the country. Yet beyond the concrete of the base, vulnerable birdlife flourishes - thanks to the hard work of a small team
Cast in bone
Cuttlefish bones washed up on our shores have been used to make jewellery since ancient times. Jo Caird meets a craftswoman who's keeping the art alive on the Kent coast
EDIBLE SEAWEEDS
An ancient food harvested by humans for millennia, seaweeds bring an intense and rich flavour of the sea to a wide range of dishes, as well as essential mind-and-body-boosting nutrients
Spines and sulky faces
Watch where you put your feet at the beach - a weever fish could be lurking
Sea stars
The playful performances of Britain's bottlenose dolphins attract avid fans - but they deserve personal space
Harris's wildly beautiful beach
Cornwall may pull in the crowds, but one Hebridean strand stuns visitors
