Non-governmental membership groups with an important natural history role

BTO; the British Trush for Ornithology; a public member organisation supporting scientifically directed observation and study of birds in Britain. During the 2007-11 Atlas we would encourage all members to enter their bird records on Bird Track or the BTO Atlas sites. On the Bird Track site you will find a summary of recent events, such as arrival of migrants.  Also, here is a compendium of all BTO sureys.

HBRG; the Highland Biological Recording Group is local to the Highlands of Scotland, coordinating records of many biological surveys and longitudinal data collections. Make sure that every month you have the a look at The Species of The Month.

RSPB; the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds; possibly the largest single public member organisation in Britain – dedicated to preserving birds and their habitat, and to educating about birds. The RSPB is now active worldwide.

Butterfly Conservation is a national UK organisation focussed on recording and preserving Lepidoptera.

In the Tain local area

The Tain community website, where many of our members live.

The Tain Museum website which shows our history from pre-history through 1066, the Royal Charter era, and onto more recent events.

Our championship standard Tain golf links which is still host to a range of wild animals offers outstanding views of the geography of the area.

Edderton is home to several members; there are geographically interesting features and bird populations in the bays of the Dornoch Firth nearby.

Golspie wildlife groups and events. In and around south east Sutherland several groups meet and organise events and undertake longitudinal studies.

Dornoch, the companion town for Tain, is located on the opposite shore of the Dornoch Firth. The Royal Dornoch Golf Course is world-renown, and the cathedral is still wholly intact and functioning, but there are also miles of beaches, nearby dune systems, moraine and esker development and a surprisingly dry climate which houses its particular flora – such as sea-level heather and lichen clad micro dunes.

Ross-shire is served by a local press which mentions TDFC activities: look for The Ross-shire Journal and the North Star .

Nearby Local Field Clubs and Naturalist Organisations

Assynt Field Club
Caithness Field Club
Highland Butterfly Conservation
Highland Foundation for Wildlife
Inverness Bat Group
Inverness Botany Group
Inverness Field Club
Orkney Field Club
Scottish Ornithologists’ Club
Southwest Ross Field Club
Highland Council local guided walks

Help with identifying an elusive species

Open University – iSpot
Natural History Museum – Nature Online
Scottish Fungi
Moth Identification

Astronomical

General space information and observations. Satellite FlyBy’s as seen from Tain. Comet speciality website.

Governmental bodies with responsibility for our environment

The major player in Scotland is SNH, Scottish Natural Heritage, and Tain sits at the northern boundary of the Eastern Highlands area, and just below the Northern Highlands area. Quite well placed to enjoy a rich natural environment in any direction!

The Government in Edinburgh has ultimate responsibility for environmental affairs.

‘Supporting’ the Scottish Government is the Scottish Parliament where environmental issues are monitored by committee.

Supporting the UK Government as an agency is the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) which oversees environmental bodies in the individual UK nations.