Machair LIFE+ News
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Aug 2011
The Uist Goose Management Scheme has commenced for 2011, funded and coordinated by the Conserving Scottish Machair LIFE+ project. The project, a partnership between SNH, RSPB, the Comhairle and the Scottish Crofting Federation and co-funded by EU LIFE+ money, is now in it second year and looks to build on the successes of its first season.
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Jul 2011
Come and meet us at the Uist Agricultural Shows this summer. We will be at South Uist and North Uist shows on 23rd July and 10th August where you will have the opportunity to meet with the team and look over our modern reaper binder machine. We look forward to meeting and talking with you about how the project may support crofting on your croft.
Goose Damage - Are Geese Damaging Your Crops? If so, get in touch, as the project is deploying goose scarers to enable crop protection. Please contact Uists Goose Scheme Coordinator Rory Macgillvray on 07879 443518 For more information, please visit the How Can We Help page, and click Crop Protection.
Jun 2011
The project is stepping up its engagement with local schools through a series of practical wildlife and crofting sessions on the machair and a planned interpretation of the machair through school arts programme and crofting connections.
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The project has successfully committed four applications to the Scottish Rural Development Plan for Biodiversity in North Uist, Barra and South Uist 2010 to benefit Natura 2000 designated features.
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Machair LIFE+ Downloads
Machair Life is a four-year project running from January 2010 to 2014, which aims to demonstrate that traditional crofting practices have a sustainable future. The success of the project will help to secure the immensely important conservation value of the unique machair habitat, 70% of which is covered by the project.
Machair Life is supported by the European Union LIFE+ scheme, and managed by The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) in partnership with Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (CnES) and the Scottish Crofting Federation (SFC).
Machair habitat is extremely rare, and changes in local agricultural practices have occurred that are now threatening the condition of the habitat and the conservation status of key flora and fauna populations.
Through working closely with crofting communities, agencies and partners within the designated Natura 2000 sites, the project team hope to secure and improve the conservation status of 70% of the world’s machair.
The project mostly covers Uist, as this is where the majority of machair occurs. However, areas of Barra, Coll and Tiree, Oronsay and south Colonsay, Islay and Lewis are also included. See our map and more details of these areas.
Machair is rare, bio-diverse coastal grassland, unique to the north-western fringe of Europe. For generations, man has worked and moulded machair in a low intensity crofting system that has created a mosaic of open habitats.
