Monarch's deer ruin the glen, claims expert

THE Queen has been accused of ignoring the devastating environmental damage caused by vast herds of red deer that roam across her Highland estate and on to one of Scotland's top nature reserves.

A leading environmentalist claims the monarch - along with many other landowners - is allowing deer numbers to run out of control because of the money to be made from shooting rights.

The row is over Caenlochan National Nature Reserve, which sprawls across 1,600 hectares, including part of the Queen's Balmoral estate.

Caenlochan is one of the most outstanding upland wilderness sites in the country, and is internationally important for its rich Arctic and Alpine flora left behind after the Ice Age.

Ecologists claim red deer overpopulation is resulting in natural heathland being replaced by grass. The slopes are eroding and the survival of endangered wildlife, such as the capercaillie, is being put at risk.

Dr Adam Watson, the scientist who recently received a lifetime achievement award from the John Muir Trust for services to the environment, said estates were "shirking their duty" to manage deer numbers and the Queen should be setting an example to other landowners.

"Over-population of deer is putting immense pressure on the habitat and the ecosystem of the national nature reserve. Caenlochan is being seriously damaged by over-grazing," Watson said.

"The landowners at Balmoral ... should be controlling the deer but instead they appear to be wanting more. Some estates have to make every bean count, but that cannot be said of Balmoral, and they have not done enough to reduce deer numbers and protect the environment. Balmoral still wants to have masses of deer and it is completely unnecessary."

Watson, who has been monitoring the environmental health of the Cairngorms for more than 40 years, claimed deer numbers are far higher than they were in the 1950s. And new legislation requiring estates to cull deer back to acceptable levels lack teeth, he said.

"It relies on the voluntary principle, and while some estates will co-operate, others, like Balmoral, are turning a blind eye to the very real problems that the vast number of deer are creating," Watson said.

The damage at Caenlochan was obvious, he added. "I was there earlier this month and grass is replacing heathland and the heather at the bottom of the glen is shorter than the heather at the top of the hill - the opposite to the way things should be."

One local contract stalker, who did not wish to be named, claimed landowners in the southern Cairngorms were fencing off grouse moors and fields of crops to prevent red deer incursions, which had led to over-grazing on Caenlochan.

"The red deer population has been concentrated in the nature reserve and now they are over-grazing the grass, heather and other plants, giving them no time to regenerate," he said. "They get eaten early and are not able to produce shoots for grouse and other wild species to enjoy. They basically flatten the whole countryside."

Dr Robert Moss, a world expert on the capercaillie, said that the dramatic decline in the bird's population over the past 30 years has mirrored the explosion in deer numbers. Some studies have put deer numbers in excess of 600,000 in Scotland.

In the 1970s, capercaillie numbers peaked at around 20,000. Now, Moss said, there are only between 1,000 and 2,000 left.

Moss, a retired ecologist, also accused landowners of "dragging their feet" in attempting to reduce deer numbers. He said: "Since the number of deer is far in excess of what is actually required, the whole future of the capercaillie is in dire jeopardy.

"Landowners want high numbers of deer because there are certain economic advantages such as easy stalking for high-paying customers and sales of venison."

The Scottish Executive's countryside protection agency, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) is also concerned that large deer herds are threatening Scotland's natural environment.

An internal SNH document says a much greater cull is necessary, especially at Caenlochan. The document states: "A specified arm of government could be given the rights to kill deer in the public interest, although this would need to be accompanied by a right to enter private land for that purpose."

The Deer Commission for Scotland, the government body which regulates deer numbers, has only limited powers and resources. It relies largely on the voluntary principle to achieve responsible deer management and as a result struggles to halt the rise in deer populations.

When it took direct action to cut deer numbers on a heavily-grazed Cairngorm estate to the west of Balmoral last year, there was a major outcry from landowners and gamekeepers.

Peter Ord, the factor of Balmoral Estate, yesterday defended the Queen's deer control policy.

He said: "We believe that we've got roughly the correct population on the estate at the moment and it is a good deal lower than our neighbours. We have between 2,500 and 3,500 deer and have 210 square kilometres to roam on, which we think is acceptable."