Scotland’s Bold Experiment in Conservation and Biodiversity at Kilchoan Melfort Trust

Scotland’s stunning countryside, highlands, and endless natural beauty are widely celebrated, making them prime locations to put on any traveler’s bucket list. But for the Edges of Earth team, this journey isn't about checking off boxes on a typical list. Instead, we stepped off the well-worn path to explore Scotland’s conservation efforts, focusing on restoration and resilience.

Scotland’s landscapes, despite their splendor, also bear the marks of centuries of agricultural expansion, land clearing, and deforestation. But fortunately, initiatives in the region are underway to combat this—one of which is the Kilchoan Melfort Trust. This conservation trust, established in 2023 on land purchased in 2016, is committed to revitalizing Scotland’s natural habitats and nurturing a sustainable future. Kilchoan’s mission centers on three core principles: ecological restoration, education, and a spiritual connection to nature.

(Kilochan Melfort Trust in the remotes of Scotland. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

The Trust’s restoration goals are ambitious, aiming to rewild the land through an ecosystem-based approach that mirrors a pre-human landscape. Partnering with universities and welcoming global researchers, Kilchoan serves as a living laboratory for biodiversity and conservation. While living on-site for a week, we shadowed Laura Dawson, a former Milton Keynes resident now fully dedicated to Kilchoan’s mission. Laura’s work involves surveying and supporting the estate’s biodiversity, from birds to moths and local flora, as she works to restore Kilchoan to the rich, unspoiled landscape it once was.

(Laura Dawson at work. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

Andi: This property feels like it’s out of a storybook, and the fact that it’s dedicated to conservation makes it even more beautiful! Can you tell us about what you do here at the Estate?

Laura: Absolutely! My work is mainly about identifying and tracking the species we have on the estate. Right now, I’m building a baseline species checklist to guide future conservation efforts. Once we have a full inventory, we can start monitoring population sizes and overall health. My day-to-day involves everything from bird ringing and reptile surveys to monitoring amphibian populations and tracking larger mammals like badgers, otters, pine martens, and red squirrels. I record their locations, observe behaviors, and sometimes even trace where certain birds may have originated. All this data feeds into our checklists and logs for the estate.

So far, we’ve identified 83 species of nocturnal moths in the Arboretum alone and haven’t even begun looking in the hills or woodlands. For birds, we’ve recorded 99 species, both aquatic and terrestrial. Camera traps have helped us locate six active badger setts, and we’re tracking pine marten territories across the estate.

But there’s room here for more, especially for our predatory bird species. We have barn and tawny owls resident on site and other birds of prey like white tailed eagles, peregrine falcons, kestrels that have nested in previous years, occasionally hen harriers, red kites and golden eagles visit. Having such a range of predatory birds is a good sign; it means we have a healthy population of smaller birds, rodents, reptiles, and insects to sustain them. We’re seeing real progress, and this is only the beginning!

Andi: That’s a lot of wildlife here on the Estate! It sounds like quite a bit to oversee. How do you handle all of this, and why is this type of management important?

Laura: It’s definitely a lot, but we break it down across the year. On any given day, I might be out doing surveys to make sure everything’s on track, which can easily take the entire day. Other times, I’m out searching for marsh fritillaries, checking specific locations on the Estate, comparing old records, and seeing if they’re still in those spots or if they’ve moved elsewhere. This estate is vast, so tracking where species are over time helps us understand shifts in their habitat preferences.

(Laura walking the Edges of Earth team through a day in the life. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

Essentially, we’re working on a full estate-wide rewilding effort, aiming to restore nature here as close as possible to how it was before human impact. In the face of climate change, this work is essential: restoring natural habitats strengthens biodiversity, helps ecosystems recover, and ultimately builds resilience against environmental changes. By rebuilding this ecological balance, we’re giving species here the best chance to thrive and preserving the Estate as a living example of what’s possible in conservation. 

Andi: You mentioned your work with bird ringing. What is this exactly, and how can someone become a bird ringer?

Laura: Bird ringing is tagging birds with small, lightweight rings to track their movements, survival, and behavior, all of which contribute to larger conservation efforts. To get started, you’d reach out to a local bird-ringing group or a certified trainer. I began with the Milton Keynes bird-ringing group and later joined a group in Northamptonshire, where I connected with a trainer who guided my progress. I spent about five years doing occasional sessions, but in 2017, I entered a more focused program, working with different species and eventually seabirds.

Now that I’ve obtained my C-permit, I can run ringing sessions independently. I still coordinate with my former mentor, David, to map out new locations, and once approved, I can invite others from the local ringing group to join. My next goal is to earn permits for seabirds and herons to broaden my scope even further.

(Becoming a bird ringer. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

Andi: So, what will it take to re-wild the property, and what are you doing right now to assess the progress?

Laura: The comprehensive species checklist we’re building is essential. It will serve as a valuable resource for visiting students and researchers, allowing them to review existing data and select specific areas or species for focused study. It also helps us and our partners coordinate conservation strategies, as we work closely with multiple organizations to get a clear picture of the estate's biodiversity and determine how best to protect these species.

For example, the bird-ringing data goes to the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), which manages the national database, while data on butterflies and moths are shared with Butterfly Conservation, the UK’s leading organization for Lepidoptera. I also upload my findings to iNaturalist for global access and refer to the NBN Atlas for historical records to confirm if species once documented here are still around. Recently, Butterfly Conservation Trust provided records for the pearl-bordered and small pearl-bordered fritillaries, asking us to survey historic sites last checked in 1997 and 2006. Thankfully, we confirmed both species are still present, especially the pearl-bordered fritillary.

(Laura studies many animals on the property to help with rewilding. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

Andi: Can you share what’s being done on the marine side with regards to re-wilding?

Laura: Absolutely—it’s largely focused on otters, seabirds, and oyster restoration. Otters are a key species we monitor, so I track their activity across the estate, including a family out on one of the islands just off the coast, using trail cameras. For seabirds, we’re working to encourage their populations by setting up decoys to attract more nesting birds to islands that once had colonies.

Our oyster restoration program is a major effort, led by Marnik van Cauter, the Estate’s Marine Asset Manager. He starts by cultivating European flat oysters on the dock until they’re ready to survive on their own, then relocates them to areas where oysters once thrived. These oysters build 3D structures as they grow, creating habitats that support other marine species. Native European flat oysters are fragile and take about four years to mature, with a mortality rate of 40-50%. So far, we’re seeing closer to 40%, which is promising.

(Marnik van Cauter at work. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

In just over three years, Marnik has released about 50,000 oysters into local waters. But in the long term, we hope to establish our own hatchery. Right now, we’re sourcing oysters from two suppliers, the Oyster Restoration Company and Morecambe Bay, and using pontoons that hold up to 28,000 oysters each. At full capacity, the dock can host around 114,000 oysters, with 8,000 currently in place.

We also have a seaweed farm off the property, managed by Marnik but studied by the whole team. It’s close enough to swim to and serves as a support system for both marine and land biodiversity. Otters, seabirds, and other wildlife carry nutrients from the sea back onto land, which benefits plant life and creates a natural crossover between marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Although we lost the salmon migrations when a dam was built on the River Oude, sea trout still migrate upstream, maintaining some of the nutrient flow between sea and land. Re-wilding Scotland’s marine areas is challenging but crucial, especially in fragile ecosystems like ours. With time, we hope to reestablish these habitats, enabling marine life to thrive and allowing nutrients to move naturally between land and sea.

Andi: What successes are you and the team seeing with the rewilding efforts on land and in the water?

Laura: The estate is a mix of plantation and natural land, and it’s rewarding to see new growth taking hold, especially with tree planting led by Luke Senior, Head of Gardens and Terrestrial Rewilding. We’re already seeing encouraging signs: young trees are thriving, and birds, especially Eurasian Jays, are moving between them. Jays are critical because they stash acorns, which helps expand the oak woodland as some acorns remain buried and sprout into new trees. This natural dispersal is key to rewilding, allowing regeneration to occur more organically instead of just through planting.

(Luke Senior at work. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

In the plantations, the trees are flourishing, and wildlife is responding. Pine martens, for example, feed on berries from rowans, and redwings and fieldfares are moving across the new plantations feeding on the berries and dispersing the seeds. This positive trend shows that as habitat improves, more species are likely to settle here. Though we’re still in early stages, each sighting is a small victory, and the signs are promising for continued progress in the coming years.

Andi: So, jays are an indicator of rewilding success?

Laura: Yes, they’re a fantastic indicator. Jays are one of the UK’s best natural planters of oak trees. As they stash acorns, which they don’t always retrieve, they inadvertently promote oak woodland expansion. Unlike squirrels and mice, which stay close to cover, jays are more mobile and travel further from mature woodlands. This mobility makes them especially valuable in rewilding. Other species help too: waterfowl spread seeds and spawn between ponds, bats carry pollen while catching insects, and even dung beetles move seeds and nutrients as they bury dung. Together, these small actions enrich the habitat, but jays are particularly effective because of their range, making them essential contributors to rewilding efforts.

(Observing the property with the KMT team. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

Andi: So it sounds like everything is interconnected. Losing some species could lead to an entire ecosystem decline.

Laura: Absolutely. Losing even half of the species here would have a huge impact, especially on plant diversity and how they interact within their environment. Pollinators are a prime example—if we lose them, we’re in serious trouble, and declines are already happening due to climate change and  pesticide use. Every species, particularly those at the bottom of the food chain, forms the foundation for everything else. When they’re gone, the whole system suffers. Building a resilient ecosystem means focusing from the ground up, understanding and protecting insects, plants, and small animals, which in turn supports the larger species.

(Rewilding the property. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

Habitat loss and food scarcity are also contributing to these declines globally. Reports from Butterfly Conservation show we’re seeing half as many butterflies as we once did, with people finding almost none, even on plants like Buddleja, which usually attracts them. And it’s not just insects—weather extremes have heavily impacted birds. House martins struggled this year; dry weather left them without mud to build nests, and later, rains destroyed what few nests they managed to build. Out of nine nests, only a few were successful, which is alarming since house martins are now on the red list. Birds like Warblers and Finches are also impacted by the loss of caterpillars, a key food source for their young.

We’re trying to help by planting wildflowers, adding habitat stacks, and introducing more pollinator-friendly plants. Without a healthy insect population, everything up the food chain feels the impact.

Andi: You’ve seen the impacts of climate change here on the Estate. What else does that look like beyond habitat decline and biodiversity loss?

Laura: The erratic weather has been the biggest issue. Last year we had sun nearly all year, then a downpour caused flooding and landslides. Locals who’ve lived here over 40 years say they’ve never seen anything like it. But I think it’s led people to be more aware of their need to protect nature. The earth naturally goes through warming and cooling cycles, but not at this speed. 

(Kilochan Melfort Trust from above. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

Scotland, for instance, has lost critical landscapes like woodlands, peatlands, and heathlands, which would otherwise help slow down these changes. Peatlands, for example, were dug up for fuel, and heathlands were burned for grouse hunting. At sea, trawling has damaged seagrass and reefs, and overharvesting devastated oyster beds that once played a big role in water filtration. Nature has been reduced to a point where it’s struggling to keep up, and the planet is warming even faster.

People often blame livestock for greenhouse gases, but think of the bison in North America or reindeer in Europe that once existed in massive herds, or flocks of geese and pigeons that took days to pass overhead. We’ve just replaced those wild herds with domestic livestock. So while this contributes, the real issue is large industries polluting the air and clearing forests for profit. Nature is being removed to benefit humans, accelerating the climate crisis.

(Laura’s work has only just begun. Photo Credit: Marla Tomorug)

Many still deny this is happening, but you only have to look at the wildfires in the U.S., Australia, and Europe, or the floods in Asia and here in Scotland. These events are growing more frequent and intense. Places like this Estate can open people’s eyes, showing that change is possible if everyone does their part.

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Told to: Andi Cross | Photography by: Adam Moore & Marla Tomorug | Support from: Kilchoan Melfort Trust

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SHE Changes Climate collaborates with the Edges of Earth Expedition, a woman-led team dedicated to highlighting impactful stories from the environmental frontlines. This partnership focuses on amplifying the voices of women who are pioneering positive change in some of the world’s most vulnerable coastal and marine environments, many of whose stories have gone untold.