JURASSIC sites on Skye, internationally recognised for their rare evidence of how dinosaurs and early mammals lived millions of years ago, have been granted a greater vital legal status to help ensure their protection for future generations.
Important fossil discoveries in the past have been damaged by hammering, and specimens have been taken from the island and moved to private collections. Three years ago, a bid to take a plaster cast of a dinosaur footprint at An Corran risked significant damage to a feature that has become an important tourist attraction.
Rural Affairs and Natural Environment Minister Mairi Gougeon yesterday signed a Nature Conservation Order (NCO) at Staffin Museum, home of dinosaur bones and nearby footprints. Its key aim is to prevent rare vertebrate fossils from being damaged through irresponsible collection and removal from Skye’s globally important fossil sites.
It will also try to encourage local people and the wider public to take an interest in and report any potentially important fossil finds.
The rich Middle Jurassic fossil fauna of Skye – known as the dinosaur capital of Scotland – is gradually being revealed with new discoveries continuing to be made, including some of the first fossil evidence of dinosaur parenting.
Housed at Staffin Museum, a rock slab shows the footprints of baby dinosaurs, together with the print of an adult.
It is expected that Skye is also home to fossil remains of flying reptiles, and confirmation of this will firmly place the island in the international dinosaur hall of fame.
“Skye lays claim to the most significant dinosaur discoveries of Scotland’s Jurassic past and this Nature Conservation Order is a vital step in protecting and preserving this important part of our natural heritage for future generations,” said Gougeon.
“The order gives extra legal protection to these special sites whilst providing for important artefacts to be collected responsibly for science and public exhibition, as Dugald Ross of the Staffin Museum has been doing since his first important discovery in 1982.”
Colin MacFadyen, a geologist with Scottish Natural Heritage, said the extra legal protection was vital to ensure Skye’s unique dinosaur heritage would be available for everyone to learn from and enjoy.
“The NCO covers areas of coastline where 165-million-year-old Middle Jurassic sedimentary rocks are gradually being eroded by the sea,” he said. “It is crucial that the footprints and actual skeletal remains of dinosaurs and other vertebrates that are being revealed by nature are protected.”
Staffin Museum owner Dugald Ross added: “Everyone has a role to play in making the order a success, and we are encouraging local people who think they may have found a vertebrate fossil – or a dinosaur bone or tooth – to contact Staffin Museum for advice.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here