National nature reserves in Scotland

In Scotland, national nature reserves (NNRs) are designated by NatureScot, and are areas of land or water designated under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 as containing habitats and species of national importance. National nature reserves can be owned by public, private, community or voluntary organisations but must be managed to conserve their important habitats and species, as well as providing opportunities for the public to enjoy and engage with nature. There are currently 43 NNRs in Scotland, which cover 154,250 hectares (1,542.5 km2), or less than 1.5% of the land area of Scotland. They range in size from Corrieshalloch Gorge at 7 ha to Mar Lodge Estate, which covers 29,324 ha.

History

National nature reserves were first created under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. In 1996 the public body responsible for Scotland's natural heritage, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH – since renamed NatureScot), undertook a review of NNR policy that took account of the availability of other designations conferring legal protection, such as site of special scientific interest, special protection area and special area of conservation. It was determined that NNR should possess four attributes: Since 2012 governance of the NNR designation in Scotland has been through a partnership group, comprising representatives of existing reserve management organisations and community land groups, chaired by NatureScot. NatureScot remains responsible for the statutory declaration of national nature reserves. ==Maintenance and management==

Maintenance and management

NatureScot is responsible for designating NNRs in Scotland and for overseeing the maintenance and management of each reserve. The majority of NNRs are directly managed by NatureScot; however, some are managed by, or in co-operation with other bodies. The NNR partnership consists of nine bodies: • Community Land Scotland • Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) • National Trust for Scotland (NTS) • RSPB Scotland • Scottish Land and Estates • NatureScot • Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) • South Lanarkshire Council • Woodland Trust Scotland Details on the management of each reserve are shown in the table below. ==List of national nature reserves in Scotland==

List of national nature reserves in Scotland

Former NNRs, de-declared since 2004 • Braehead Moss, de-declared on 9 December 2011 • Claish Moss, de-declared on 1 March 2012 • Keen of Hamar, de-declared on 13 July 2012 • Mealdarroch, de-declared on 9 December 2011 • Monach Islands, de-declared on 18 May 2018 • Rona and Sula Sgeir, de-declared on 18 May 2018 ==See also==

Source: Wikipedia ↗

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