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STV News
03-05-2025
- General
- STV News
Plea for paddleboarders and kayakers to steer clear of endangered birds
A plea is being made to watersport lovers to help save one of Scotland's most endangered birds. Paddleboarders and kayakers are being asked to steer clear of a popular loch which is also a haven for Slavonian grebes. Their numbers have declined sharply in recent years. Loch Ruthven attracts fishers, swimmers, paddleboarders and kayakers. The protected Site of Special Scientific Interest is also a magnet for one of the colourful grebes. In Scotland, the species only breeds within 30 miles of Inverness but numbers at Loch Ruthven have dipped from ten pairs in 2019 to just three pairs last year. Half the UK's breeding population of Slavonian grebe nests on Loch Ruthven and increased human activity has caused concern. Steph Elliott of RSPB Scotland, said: 'One thing that we do know is happening is that there's an increase in recreational activity taking place on Slovenian Grebe lochs and that causes disturbance to the birds. 'It prevents them getting to their nests. It might keep birds from their nests so they can't incubate their eggs properly and, also, they're a bird that's quite vulnerable to disturbance, so they don't like the presence of people. 'What we're asking folks to do is to just not go out onto the water where the birds are really easily disturbed. 'We would rather folks came here to Loch Ruthven to see the grebes than go to other sites that are vulnerable to disturbance because we've got a birdwatching hide here and we can help people see them safely without disturbing them.' The catastrophic decline in grebe numbers has prompted the charity, working in collaboration with Highland Council, to launch a public consultation on restricting public use of the water. Local councillor and Green Party group leader Chris Ballance said: 'The decline of birdlife across Scotland is deeply worrying, particularly the rarer birds like this. 'It's really important that we keep the biodiversity, that we keep as wide a range of species as possible in Scotland, and that means sometimes protecting our natural spaces so that people don't disturb them at key points in the breeding seeason.' The consultation runs until mid May. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Times
22-04-2025
- Science
- Times
The race is on for supremacy in quantum computing
As a start-up, Oxford Ionics may be relatively small but it sees itself as a big player in a global computing revolution. Its quantum computing technology, which has the power to solve problems that classic computers cannot, has already won over some advocates in government. Last month Lord Vallance of Balham, the science minister, travelled to Oxford to see the firm's Quartet computer, one of 12 machines commissioned for use in the £140 million National Quantum Computing Centre. Eight have been developed by private tech companies like Oxford Ionics which was founded in 2019 by Dr Chris Ballance and Dr Tom Harty, two former Oxford University students. Speaking at the event in Oxford, Vallance said: 'Supporting things like [Oxford Ionics] sends a clear signal to
