Muirburn
A patchwork of irregular shapes marks many upland areas of Scotland—evidence of muirburn, the controlled burning of heather to encourage new growth that provides both food and shelter for red grouse. Bulldozed tracks wind through the landscape, giving easy access to the many shooting butts that pepper the hillsides. From above, the scale of intervention is unmistakable, what appears wild at first glance is, in reality, carefully managed to encourage grouse to flourish—so they can be shot for sport.
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