3 March 2023 Issue 2517 © ULLAPOOL NEWS
We are a Fairtrade Village
Whatever happened to the Banana Hunt?
To any Ullapool Primary School child or parent who had wondered what happened to the Banana Hunt, advertised to take place last Saturday, we can only apologise. It was due to issues beyond our control.
Apologies also go to the shops and businesses – all 25 of them! – who had enthusiastically agreed to participate by displaying a Fairtrade banana in their window.
We were also very disappointed! So we are hoping to re -schedule the event, with a provisional date of Saturday 13 May, World Fair Trade Day. Watch this space!
The idea of the banana hunt is to highlight the fact that bananas, along with some of our other favourite foods like cocoa and coffee, could soon become much more difficult to find. This is because climate change is making it harder to grow these crops. Along with unfair trade rules, farmers and workers are finding it hard to survive.
But the good news is that by buying Fairtrade we can all support producers to earn a proper living, protect the future of some of our most loved foods and the planet.
Ullapool Fairtrade Group
*****
Please support UGOR by going along to this event on Saturday 4 March and help raise money for the Turkey & Syria earthquake disaster fund.
Community Sale and Soup and Sandwich lunch for the Turkey and Syria earthquake disaster fund.
in Ullapool Village Hall on Saturday 4th March from 12.30pm till 3.30pm. Please come along and support this fundraiser.
If anyone would like to donate items for the sale table in aid of the fund or any other information please contact Tracy Boa on 07375127705. Collection can be arranged. Also if any business or charity or individuals would like to book a sale table for the day it will be £10 for business table and £5 for charity and public tables.
Thank you.
*****
‘snippets from inside the paper’ – order the complete paper through the post with a subscription.
*****
LOCAL WEATHER REPORT
Weather for Tuesday 21st – Monday 27th February Max temp 12C = 54F min temp -2.2C = 28F
We had a dull, but relatively mild start to the period.
Thursday was wet and windy in the afternoon.
Thereafter we had a fine spell of sunny weather.
The cloudless skies brought cool temperatures overnight and cars needed defrosting in the morning.
There were many good sightings of the Northern Lights and Venus and Jupiter were bright and easy to see.
At the time of writing it was looking like the dry spell would continue, but with possible showers for the weekend.
SB
*****
Lochbroom Community Council Beach clean
update for February.
The strong winds and large tides resulted in a lot of debris on the beaches in February compared to the previous month.
In total 14 beach cleans / litter picks were completed for the month and 163.65kg collected, over 3 times as much as January.
Running total for 2023 now 214.93kg
Keep Scotland Beautiful are running their annual Spring Clean Scotland campaign between 17 March – 17 April. Would anyone in the village like to volunteer to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday to help tidy up the village before the main tourist season begins ?
Provisionally thinking of Saturdays 18 and 25 March, flexible depending on the weather. We could meet at the clock tower at 11am and spend up to a couple of hours collecting litter. All equipment provided, gloves, litter pickers and bags etc
Will create an event on Facebook to gauge interest. Also in the UN ‘what’s on’ for those that don’t do social media.
GP.
*****
HEBRIDEAN WHALE AND DOLPHIN TRUST Walrus in the Hebrides
A walrus has been spotted in the Hebrides, hauled out on Cairn na Burgh Beag – a small island which forms part of the Treshnish Isles, off the north west coast of the Isle of Mull. Local creel fisherman, Lorn MacRae, spotted the massive creature basking shark on the shore in the winter sun. Lorn reported his incredible sighting to the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT), after encountering the animal on Monday 27 February. HWDT have been collecting sightings reports off Scotland’s west coast for over 25 years, and this is the first report of a walrus in HWDT’s database, so this is a significant record for the region.
“It was a surprise to see the walrus hauled out, the Atlantic grey seals seemed to be giving it a wide berth” said Lorn MacRae
Walruses are rare visitors to Scottish shores, although in recent years there have been several reports of these huge marine mammals in UK waters. Over the festive period, a large male – known as Thor – had been spotted in Yorkshire, prior to that he had been reported in the Netherlands and off France. However, Thor was recorded in Iceland on Friday 24 February, so if this is him, he’s made an unbelievable journey!
Thor has distinctive markings on his flippers, so HWDT are asking anyone who may encounter the walrus to report it on Whale Track and send in photos. Reporting sightings of this walrus through Whale Track will allow HWDT to monitor the movement and health of the animal and add to the understanding of marine life off Scotland’s
coasts. “Reporting through Whale Track provides us with vital data on the species in our seas, helping monitor the different species. Through Photo-ID, we can find out more about the animals life, monitoring its movements and health. We don’t have walrus as a specific species in Whale Track as it is such a rare sighting, however people can report it using the category ‘other’ and put the species in the comments section.” said SADIE GORVETT, HWDT EDUCATION OFFICER
While this is an exciting sighting, welfare concerns have been raised when walruses have hauled out in more populated areas. It is important to maintain a safe and respectful distance (<100m), not to hang about too long (15 mins max) and limit numbers (the saying three’s a crowd is applicable when watching marine wildlife).
— MOLLY GRAY, BDMLR RESCUE AND COMMUNITY CO-ORDINATOR
It is not clear why there have been increased reports in recent years of walrus in more southern latitudes, only with long-termmonitoringcanwedeterminewhetherthisisatrendorananomaly. Ifyouspotawalrus,orwhale, dolphin, porpoise or basking shark in
Scottish seas, HWDT would be delighted
to hear about it. Join the Whale Track community, report what you’ve spotted and help deepen the understanding of the species found in our waters and the threats they face.
For more details about the Whale Track, see www.whaletrack.hwdt.org
We are a Fairtrade Village
Whatever happened to the Banana Hunt?
To any Ullapool Primary School child or parent who had wondered what happened to the Banana Hunt, advertised to take place last Saturday, we can only apologise. It was due to issues beyond our control.
Apologies also go to the shops and businesses – all 25 of them! – who had enthusiastically agreed to participate by displaying a Fairtrade banana in their window.
We were also very disappointed! So we are hoping to re -schedule the event, with a provisional date of Saturday 13 May, World Fair Trade Day. Watch this space!
The idea of the banana hunt is to highlight the fact that bananas, along with some of our other favourite foods like cocoa and coffee, could soon become much more difficult to find. This is because climate change is making it harder to grow these crops. Along with unfair trade rules, farmers and workers are finding it hard to survive.
But the good news is that by buying Fairtrade we can all support producers to earn a proper living, protect the future of some of our most loved foods and the planet.
Ullapool Fairtrade Group
*****
Please support UGOR by going along to this event on Saturday 4 March and help raise money for the Turkey & Syria earthquake disaster fund.
Community Sale and Soup and Sandwich lunch for the Turkey and Syria earthquake disaster fund.
in Ullapool Village Hall on Saturday 4th March from 12.30pm till 3.30pm. Please come along and support this fundraiser.
If anyone would like to donate items for the sale table in aid of the fund or any other information please contact Tracy Boa on 07375127705. Collection can be arranged. Also if any business or charity or individuals would like to book a sale table for the day it will be £10 for business table and £5 for charity and public tables.
Thank you.
*****
‘snippets from inside the paper’ – order the complete paper through the post with a subscription.
*****
LOCAL WEATHER REPORT
Weather for Tuesday 21st – Monday 27th February Max temp 12C = 54F min temp -2.2C = 28F
We had a dull, but relatively mild start to the period.
Thursday was wet and windy in the afternoon.
Thereafter we had a fine spell of sunny weather.
The cloudless skies brought cool temperatures overnight and cars needed defrosting in the morning.
There were many good sightings of the Northern Lights and Venus and Jupiter were bright and easy to see.
At the time of writing it was looking like the dry spell would continue, but with possible showers for the weekend.
SB
*****
Lochbroom Community Council Beach clean
update for February.
The strong winds and large tides resulted in a lot of debris on the beaches in February compared to the previous month.
In total 14 beach cleans / litter picks were completed for the month and 163.65kg collected, over 3 times as much as January.
Running total for 2023 now 214.93kg
Keep Scotland Beautiful are running their annual Spring Clean Scotland campaign between 17 March – 17 April. Would anyone in the village like to volunteer to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday to help tidy up the village before the main tourist season begins ?
Provisionally thinking of Saturdays 18 and 25 March, flexible depending on the weather. We could meet at the clock tower at 11am and spend up to a couple of hours collecting litter. All equipment provided, gloves, litter pickers and bags etc
Will create an event on Facebook to gauge interest. Also in the UN ‘what’s on’ for those that don’t do social media.
GP.
*****
HEBRIDEAN WHALE AND DOLPHIN TRUST Walrus in the Hebrides
A walrus has been spotted in the Hebrides, hauled out on Cairn na Burgh Beag – a small island which forms part of the Treshnish Isles, off the north west coast of the Isle of Mull. Local creel fisherman, Lorn MacRae, spotted the massive creature basking shark on the shore in the winter sun. Lorn reported his incredible sighting to the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT), after encountering the animal on Monday 27 February. HWDT have been collecting sightings reports off Scotland’s west coast for over 25 years, and this is the first report of a walrus in HWDT’s database, so this is a significant record for the region.
“It was a surprise to see the walrus hauled out, the Atlantic grey seals seemed to be giving it a wide berth” said Lorn MacRae
Walruses are rare visitors to Scottish shores, although in recent years there have been several reports of these huge marine mammals in UK waters. Over the festive period, a large male – known as Thor – had been spotted in Yorkshire, prior to that he had been reported in the Netherlands and off France. However, Thor was recorded in Iceland on Friday 24 February, so if this is him, he’s made an unbelievable journey!
Thor has distinctive markings on his flippers, so HWDT are asking anyone who may encounter the walrus to report it on Whale Track and send in photos. Reporting sightings of this walrus through Whale Track will allow HWDT to monitor the movement and health of the animal and add to the understanding of marine life off Scotland’s
coasts. “Reporting through Whale Track provides us with vital data on the species in our seas, helping monitor the different species. Through Photo-ID, we can find out more about the animals life, monitoring its movements and health. We don’t have walrus as a specific species in Whale Track as it is such a rare sighting, however people can report it using the category ‘other’ and put the species in the comments section.” said SADIE GORVETT, HWDT EDUCATION OFFICER
While this is an exciting sighting, welfare concerns have been raised when walruses have hauled out in more populated areas. It is important to maintain a safe and respectful distance (<100m), not to hang about too long (15 mins max) and limit numbers (the saying three’s a crowd is applicable when watching marine wildlife).
— MOLLY GRAY, BDMLR RESCUE AND COMMUNITY CO-ORDINATOR
It is not clear why there have been increased reports in recent years of walrus in more southern latitudes, only with long-termmonitoringcanwedeterminewhetherthisisatrendorananomaly. Ifyouspotawalrus,orwhale, dolphin, porpoise or basking shark in
Scottish seas, HWDT would be delighted
to hear about it. Join the Whale Track community, report what you’ve spotted and help deepen the understanding of the species found in our waters and the threats they face.
For more details about the Whale Track, see www.whaletrack.hwdt.org
