Wild Galloway

This is a personal, reflective account of Galloway’s wildlife based on life in a uniquely varied and diverse glen, tucked away between high, heather-clad hills and the shore of the Solway.  It includes the author’s reflections on the importance of wild places, based on a lifetime of experience as a naturalist and conservationist.Ian Carter expresses a desire for more wildness, and living in a place with few people allows wildlife to take on greater significance. Sights and sounds are dominated by things from the wider natural world and connections deepen. In his home in the wilds of Galloway, red squirrels peer in through the windows, pine martens patrol the local woods and on a good day a golden eagle will cruise overhead, helping to complete the place. It was the beginning of a love affair with the wildlife of this small glen between the hills and the shining, silver Solway.Wild Galloway is a portrait of a singular patch of ground and an introduction to the wildlife of Galloway more broadly. The glen supports a little of each of Galloway’s main habitats – there are the high tops of Bengairn and Screel surrounded by moorland and bog, a hideout for the handful of red grouse that cling to these hills. Ancient ash and hazel woods flank the lower pastures, and a burn with its otters and brown trout rushes through them towards the sea. And where the glen meets the Solway there is merse and mudflats, wild geese tumble from the sky, and waders of all kinds tease invertebrates from the ooze. In spring, sheer cliffs fill with seabirds, spilling away from their ledges each time the peregrines try their luck. Whale-backed Hestan Island comes alive with nesting gulls, just as the scaup and common scoter begin to drift north.There is something very special about this place: it is wild Galloway in miniature. ‘This book is a delight: gentle, sympathetic and thoughtful, and accurate, informative and knowledgeable.’  Mark Avery, Standing up for Nature blog‘…like some of the best of this kind of writing, Wild Galloway beckons us out of [our] armchair. Smile, make the effort, all is not lost. This stuff gladdens the heart, like tea and toast in a farm kitchen.’ Barry Larking, ECOS:‘In his wonderful new book, he introduces us to Galloway’s wild places and the wildlife that lives there. An entertaining and thoughtful account…’ Dumfries & Galloway Life Magazine ‘…seasoned with thoughtfulness. Carter thinks his way around the landscape and through his interactions with wildlife: he has the thought processes of a keen naturalist and an easy way of expressing this.’ Stephen Rutt, British Birds “Gentle, thoughtful and sensory… A better introduction to this glorious area is hard to imagine.’ John Muir Trust Journal ‘It is a pleasure to be in Carter’s observant company as he explores the foreshore, camps on an island, clambers through ancient woodland beside a burn or ascends through tussock and bog to the high tops of Bengairn.’  James Robertson, British Wildlife ‘…a lovely book, a joy to read, the sort of book that provides much-needed relief from everything that's going wrong in the wider world.’ Undiscovered Scotland ‘This gentle, thoughtful book offers a sensory account of the area’s wild inhabitants – all within walking distance from the author’s new home. Ranging from sea to summit, it reveals a snapshot of the sheer variety of wildlife and habitat found in what is an often overlooked part of the country.’ Scottish Wildlife ‘Anyone buying this book will, I am sure, enjoy and appreciate the writing and wonderful talent of a very skilled naturalist and storyteller.’ Steven Rutherford, British Naturalist‘Wild Galloway describes beautifully the topography and the wildlife in the glen around the author’s house.  … an easy, pleasant and enlightening read…’ Alan Stewart, Wildlife Detective blog ‘… laid back, relaxed, but still informative and insightful … like having a conversation with Ian whilst being out and about with him. Enjoyed and recommended.’ Ian Parsons, Author and naturalist ‘… an exhilarating new book … an exquisitely written account of the habitats and wildlife around his adoptive home in this part of south-west Scotland.’ The Wryneck blogspot