Wildfire work protects moor
Keepers fighting fire with fire
Gamekeepers acro s s Scotland have been stepping up their efforts to prevent wildfires.
They are working ahead of the grouse season to ensure heatherclad moorlands provide favourable habitat for ground-nesting wildlife and safeguards against wildfires.
Wildfires can devastate acres of moorland which provide muchneeded habitat to a host of groundnesting bird species such as the grouse, lapwing, golden plover and globally-threatened curlew.
When carried out carefully by professionals, seasonal burning, or muirburn, provides breaks in continuous moorland cover and reduces fuel load, giving opportunities to control wildfires and thereby reducing the amount of damage caused.
The main muirburn season is between October and April and the Scottish Government’s muirburn code, which is currently under review, sets out best practice guidelines for land managers.
Gamekeepers have been busy carrying out seasonal burning and cutting heather to remove overdominant vegetation and enable the heather to regenerate healthily, which in turn helps prevent wildfires from starting.
Bruce Farquharson from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service sits on the muirburn code review steering group. He said: “The fire service has access to a fire danger rating system, which alerts us to the risk of wildfires based on various factors such as temperature, wind speed and predicted rainfall.
“So far this year the incidence of wildfire has been low but conditions can change very quickly.
“This is, in no small part, due to the good management practices being carried out by grouse moor owners and gamekeepers across Scotland.
“Seasonal burning and cutting when conducted in adherence to the muirburn code is one of the most effective means of significantly reducing the risk of damage from wildfires on moorland.
“Gamekeepers have shown a great understanding and knowledge of the land they manage on a daily basis and the risks and benefits of conducting muirburn.
“We often work in partnership with gamekeepers if a wildfire does break out because keepers have the local knowledge and experience to assist firefighters and such situations can be very resource intensive.
“Good relations and communications between the fire service and gamekeepers at a local level are absolutely key to the muirburn code’s success and any ongoing improvements.”