The Hebrides. J. M. Boyd

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ Tiree, Gunna and Coll

       Uists and Benbecula

       Swans

       Ducks

       14.The Machair Islands

       Tiree and the Uists

       The Monach Isles

       Machair—a Natural Heritage

       15.Rum—an Island Nature Reserve

       The Volcano

       The Forest

       Red Deer

       Sea Eagles

       16.St Kilda—Island of World Heritage

       The St Kildans

       Rock of Ages

       Home of the West Wind

       Seabirds of St Kilda

       Wrens and Mice

       Feral sheep—Soays and Blackfaces

       Part III: Islands and People

       17.Naturalists and Historians

       16th and 17th Centuries

       18th and 19th Centuries

       First Half of the 20th Century

       Second Half of the 20th Century

       18.Land Use—Tryst of Man and Nature

       Land Use History

       Agricultural Improvement

       Forestry

       Minerals

       Ores

       Silica

       Aggregates, Slates and Block Stone

       19.Fisheries and Fish Farming

       Fishery History

       Demersal and Pelagic Fish

       Shellfish

       Fish Farming

       20.Nature Conservation

       Biological Sites

       Coastal

       Uplands

       Woodland

       Inland Waters

       Peatland and Bogs

       Geological Sites

       Lewisian, Torridonian, Moine

       Mesozoic

       Tertiary

       Marine Conservation

       Nature Reserves

       Protected Species

       Picture Section

       Epilogue

       Bibliography

       Index

       Acknowledgements

       About the Publisher

Foreword

WINDSOR CASTLE

      It might be said that enthusiasm is the mother of creation. There is no doubt at all about the enthusiasm of the Boyd family for the Hebrides, and it shows in every line of this splendid book that they have created. Having sailed and cruised in Hebridean waters for many years and having acquired an interest in birds, I can quite understand the fascination of that very beautiful part of the world for those with a consuming passion for natural history.

      If I had not already been involved in conservation through the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), I would have been converted by the changes I have witnessed in the Hebrides over the last twenty years. Plastic flotsam and oil pollution on most of the beaches, the decline in seabird populations and the intensity of commercial fishing reflect what is happening almost everywhere in the world.

      I am sure that this book will become essential reading for all students of the Hebrides, and I believe that it will become a ‘bench mark’ for all those who are interested in the natural history of the islands in the future. It will provide an invaluable means of assessing any further degradation of the area, as well as making it possible to measure the success of any conservation efforts.

Editor’s Preface

      The Northern and Western Isles of Britain have long drawn the attention of naturalists by reason of their distinct landscapes and their exceptionally interesting communities of animals and plants. Added to this is the attraction of distant islands, with their own cultures and histories, and with climates subject to the severities of the North Atlantic ocean. The New Naturalist Series recognised this interest in the publication of Fraser Darling’s Natural History in the Highlands and Islands in 1947, a book which received acclaim from the wide audience of those generally or especially interested in the wildlife of Britain. More recently, the series has published The Natural History СКАЧАТЬ