"Aberdeenshire"

Page last revised:
13th September 2004

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DATE:	ANIMAL:	LOCATION:
22nd August 2000	WOLVES	Huntly
29th August 2002	TARANTULA	Middlefield
27th March 2004	STOLEN OWLS	Turfills
9th June 2004	SCOPS OWL	Out at Sea

 

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(Source: The Scottish Herald June 09 2004)

Contributed by Lisa Willow
Writen By Paul Williams, 06/08/04, http://wehrwulf.fcpages.com

File: 2004-174
Ref No: 1281

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Clashindarroch Forest, Nr Huntly
WOLVES
Man claims to have seen wolf in forest
A visitor to the North-east claimed last night that he had encountered a wolf in the wild during a recent holiday. Conrad Sheward, 62, was on a shooting trip with friends when he saw what he was sure was a wolf roaming Clashindarroch Forest, near Huntly. Mr Sheward, from Gloucester, was driving up a hill with friend Richard Brundle and Mr Brundle's 15-year-old son, Tom, when made their apparently startling discovery last Monday morning. "We opened the locked forestry gate and drove through about 100 yards and then came to a bend," said the lawyer. "About 120 yards away, there was an animal in the middle of the road sideways on to us. It turned and looked straight at us. Initially I though it was a huge fox. It was grey with a whitish tail but it was
too big for a fox."

Mr Sheward, who has been visiting the North-east for nine years, said he had seen wolves in the flesh at wildlife parks and was convinced his eyes had not deceived him. "I have got no doubt in my mind that it was a wolf. I would have known if it had been a dog." Mr Sheward had been staying with friend Jim Copland, from Aberdeen, who has been shooting tenant at the Forestry Commission-owned land for 18 years.

Mr Copland, 73, said he had never seen or heard reports of a wolf on the estate - but was not overly surprised at his friend's apparent sighting. He said he had been told of reports that wolves were being released into the wild in the Highlands. The presence of the predators would be a major setback for local farmers whose livestock would come under threat, added Mr Copland. He said he first suspected the animal might have been a giant cat such as a puma - revealing that a feline beast had been shot and buried in the forest two years ago. "Wolves are a dangerous animal which would prey on livestock," he said.

Some conservationists have appealed for the reintroduction of wolves in the Scottish glens to save the countryside from an explosion of red deer.

Press and Journal, 22nd August 2000

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Middlefield
TARANTULA
HAVE YOU SEEN A TARANTULA ON THE LOOSE?
CAROLYN AIKEN
The search for a missing two-and-a-half-year-old pet tarantula which escaped from its tank continued yesterday.
John-Ross Buchan from in Aberdeen, reluctantly called in pest controller Dennis McGillivray to fumigate his home and his neighbour's home after the poisonous arachnid escaped. But despite the houses being treated and traps being set, there is still no sign of the African baboon spider. The creature, which has bright blue legs, is aggressive but its venom is not lethal to humans. However, if bitten, a human victim would require an antidote and hospital treatment.

Mr Buchan earlier said: "The spiders are a bit immune to this stuff ( fumigation) and this spider is a nasty piece of work." Yesterday, however, Mr Buchan, who has been searching for his pet since it escaped in May, was not too optimistic about the chances of finding his furry friend alive: "It's most likely to have been killed by the fumes."

29 August 2002
Press and Journal

Contributed by: Mark Fraser
Scottish Big Cats.
www.scottishbigcats.org

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Turfills
STOLEN OWLS
OWLS STOLEN FROM RAPTOR CENTRE
Four owls were taken from cages at the Scottish Raptor Centre, Turfills, Kinross on Friday 26th May or Saturday 27th May 2004. The centre also contains several reptiles and birds of prey including Kestrels and Harris Hawks.

(Source: icscotland)
27/03/2004

Written by Paul Williams

Ref No 1112

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