Chairman's Working Group - 7 February

The meeting was held at the RSPB Scottish HQ, Edinburgh

Attendance:				Apologies:
Jamie	Lindsay	Chairman		Andrew	Coupar	SNH
Simon	Thorp	Director		Malcolm	Younger	RICS
Anne	Stoddart	Administrator		Davy	McCracken	SRUC
Tim	Baynes	SL&E		Ronnie	Kippen	SGA
Roger	Burton	SNH		Adam	Smith	GWCT
Will	Boyd-Wallis	CNPA
Hugh	Dignon	SG
Alex	Hogg	SGA
Duncan	Orr-Ewing	RSPB
Chris	Wernham	BTO

Summary of the Discussion

1               Agenda for the Forum meeting on 28 February  

• Modified and agreed.

2               Species Interactions

• New title agreed: Understanding Predation
• Paper discussed at the meeting would be revised to incorporate the issues considered, and the revised version would be circulated to Forum members for review at the Forum meeting.
• Scope to be: "Avian and mammalian predators of wild birds".  Piscivorous birds would be excluded, but it was agreed that the scope could include mammal on mammal predation where it was relevant.

3               Forum Summer Meeting

• Mar Lodge at Braemar was the preferred option and details will be presented at the Forum meeting.  Members will be asked to consider the proposal.

4               Development of best practice Moorland Management Guidance          

• This would be a development of the Principles of Moorland Management, published by the Forum in 2003.  The proposal that was discussed would also be presented at the Forum meeting.

5               Governance

• Four members had yet to pay their annual subscriptions.

6               SNH Chairman

• An early opportunity would be sought for the Chairman and Director to meet Andrew Thin’s successor as Chairman of SNH.