FOWLING CONFERENCE - GUGA WITH AN INTERNATIONAL FLAVOUR

Putting in a wider context the annual expedition by the men of Ness to harvest young gannets on Sulasgeir was the theme of a 3-day international conference organised by Lewis-based The Islands Book Trust and held in Ness between 9-11 September 2004.

Some 40 people gathered at the Ness Heritage Centre (and in the evenings at the Cross Inn) to hear leading speakers from six North European countries talk about traditions of sea-bird fowling in their countries: Iceland, the Faroes, Norway, Finland, and Ireland, as well as Scotland. There were also films about fowling, songs by Mary Smith, a ceilidh, and an illustrated talk by Dods Macfarlane about the guga hunt. Perhaps the highlight was the taste of guga provided at the Friday evening meal – courtesy of Dods whose team had only got back from Sulasgeir earlier in the week. The conference attracted interest from media across the UK and in Germany.

Among the conclusions of the conference during a fascinating few days were:

• The Sulasgeir guga hunt is the last remaining vestige in the UK of what used to be much more widespread traditional fowling practices – in places such as St Kilda, the Shiants, Mingulay, Foula, Westray, the Bass Rock, Ailsa Craig, and parts of England and Wales.
• Traditional fowling (without the use of guns) has similarly now largely ceased in countries such as Ireland and Norway, but in the Faroes and Iceland it is still very much alive and a valued part of local life.
• While the details of fowling have varied from area to area according to the bird species present, the means of capture, and the way land and cliffs are owned, there are many common themes reflecting the origin of fowling as part of locally managed subsistence economies, and in many areas there is a rich legacy of cultural traditions which are a source of pride and identity for local communities.
• The undoubted cultural value of fowling traditions needs always to be looked at alongside two other considerations: the sustainability of the harvest of birds in ecological terms; and animal welfare considerations.
• While the evidence from Sulasgeir is that numbers of gannets are not falling and the hunt appears to be sustainable, continual monitoring of the position is essential – in the past there have been large unintended declines of some bird populations in some areas (not necessarily due to hunting), and one extinction (the Great Auk) occurred in the nineteenth century.
• While the method of taking birds on Sulasgeir seems to involve minimal suffering to the birds, there have been cases in the past where techniques have been banned on animal welfare grounds. Fowling in the Faroes and Iceland (as on Sulasgeir) currently enjoys the strong support of most local people, but there is always a risk that public opinion in the wider world – dominated by people living in urban areas – will raise issues which need to be addressed.

It was a great pleasure to host such an international gathering in Ness, and links were made which hopefully can be maintained and built on in the future. For many of the visitors, it was their first time in Lewis, and they greatly enjoyed the experience. The proceedings of the conference have now been published - see Publications.

AGNES RENNIE TO GIVE THE 2010 ANGUS MACLEOD MEMORIAL LECTURE ON LAND REFORM

This year’s prestigious Angus Macleod memorial lecture will take place on Thursday 28th October in Pairc School, Gravir, it was announced today. The speaker will be Agnes Rennie, a crofter from Galson, Ness, Lewis, and well known for her work with the Crofters Commission, Bord na Gaidhlig, councillor for the Nis is an Taobh Siar of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, and currently chair of Urras Oighreachd Ghabhsainn (Galson Trust).

Agnes, who will speak in Gaelic (with simultaneous translation into English) will be taking as her subject the land struggle, land reform, and community ownership of land – a subject dear to the heart of the late Angus ‘Ease’ Macleod MBE and not tackled in previous lectures.more