Locally grown, locally built: rewilding Skye
A unique community rewilding project has been completed on the Isle of Skye, marking a major step in restoring the island’s river ecosystems.
These seeds islands (small fenced clusters of native trees and vegetation) will kickstart natural woodland regeneration, built by volunteers with the Uigshader Living Forest Project, a partner in SCOTLAND: The Big Picture’s Northwoods Rewilding Network. The Uigshader Living Forest Project is a community-led initiative dedicated to transforming a previously industrialised landscape into a thriving native woodland, conserving vital ecosystems like deep peat, enhancing biodiversity, and creating a sustainable, community-focused space for recreation, livelihoods, and low-impact living. The Northwoods Rewilding Network seeks to demonstrate how rewilding can be applied across different scales and settings, and the range of benefits it can drive, for nature, climate and people. SCOTLAND: The Big Picture is a charity working to make rewilding happen across Scotland, as a solution to the growing climate and biodiversity crises.
Using only local resources and local labour, the Uigshader Living Forest Project (ULFP), a partner in the Northwoods Rewilding Network, has built ten ‘seed islands’ along two tributaries of the River Snizort, supporting vital habitat for salmon, birds and insects.
Seed islands are small, fenced clusters of native trees and vegetation, strategically placed to kickstart natural woodland regeneration. Over time, these islands expand as seeds disperse, gradually restoring degraded landscapes and improving biodiversity.
Funded by McGowan Environmental via SCOTLAND: The Big Picture’s Rewilding Business Partnership programme, the seed islands span a 2.5km stretch of two of the Snizort’s main tributaries, the Lon an Eireannach and Lon an Iolaire. The initiative embodies the power of grassroots conservation, standing out for its commitment to sustainability and community involvement. Every piece of timber used in the construction was grown and milled on site, and all the work was carried out entirely by local volunteers, involving friends and family of all ages.
‘The purpose of the seed islands, or tree clusters, is to create shaded areas in the river, which cool the water and are beneficial to fish,’ explains Megan Potter, a trustee of the Uigshader Living Forest Project. ‘Planting broad leaf trees helps to reduce the acidification of the water that was a result of the previous Sitka plantation. It would be impossible to establish these trees without the protection from grazing pressure that the seed islands offer.’
‘With a long history of sheep crofting, Skye is not naturally a rewilding-friendly place,’ explains James Nairne, Northwoods Project Lead with SCOTLAND: The Big Picture. ‘But like the majority of Scotland’s rivers, the Snizort needs riparian woodlands to improve critical habitats and strengthen local resilience to climate change. It's an inspiring example of a committed local community taking the lead in restoring natural ecosystems using the resources available to them.’
‘I’m delighted to hear about the completion of the seed islands, having visited the site a few years ago,’ adds Sam Hesling, Environmental Contracts Manager for Aviemore-based McGowan Environmental. ‘As a leading contracting business working in some of Scotland’s most fragile and protected environments, we’re committed to minimising our impact, increasing biodiversity and restoring natural habitats. Supporting riparian planting in Skye aligns perfectly with these values, and I look forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on the local landscape and biodiversity.’
The Uigshader Living Forest Project is a community vision to transform a former commercial tree plantation on Skye into a flourishing native woodland. Centred around sustainability, ecology and community, the goal is to establish a vibrant ecosystem that benefits both nature and the local community.
These seed islands are the latest in a growing list of nature restoration efforts by ULFP. From humble beginnings - purchasing land with no experience in fencing, large-scale tree planting, or managing invasive Spruce - they’ve achieved a remarkable amount. Highlights include 6km of deer fencing, 30,000 native trees planted, 10 hectares of Spruce cleared by hand, and on-site timber used to build a footbridge, community barn, solar system and composting toilet.
Driven by just nine dedicated volunteers (all with their own day jobs), and support from local friends, grandparents and four young children, ULFP is now turning its focus to restoring deep peat using low impact, community-led methods. Volunteer days for building leaky dams and rewetting peat will run throughout the summer, and new helpers are always welcome. Find ULFP on Facebook or email uigshader@gmail.com to get involved.
The Northwoods Rewilding Network is a Scotland-wide chain of landholdings convened and coordinated by SCOTLAND: The Big Picture. Its partners are all committed to nature recovery and share a vision for an ecologically restored landscape, where habitats are better connected and species can recover, expand and disperse.
