Balnain Primary pupils win top prize in Scottish mammal art competition
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Primary pupils who created their own "Highland Acre Wood" from sustainable resources have come out top of the class in an art competition.
Zookeepers at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland's (RZSS) Edinburgh Zoo helped to judge the Scottish mammal art competition, which was organised by the High Life Highland countryside rangers.
The winning school entry came from children in primary 2, 3 and 4 at Balnain Primary School outside Drumnadrochit. They made a model of their view of the woods from the classroom window using recycled and natural materials from the playground. They then made a video explaining how and why they had done this.
Julie MacLeod, head teacher at Balnain Primary, said: “Our pupils are such nature lovers! They loved doing the mammal project with John Orr, our local ranger, and really enjoyed creating their own ‘Highland Acre Wood’ which looks a bit like the woods outside our classroom.
"They worked really well together and are so pleased with their finished design. They’re absolutely delighted to have won!”
The art competition is a celebration of work done throughout the year by school pupils all over the Highlands with the ranger service looking at mammals of Scotland, past present and future. More than 40 schools from Lochaber to Caithness took part in the project and went out with the rangers to see what mammals could be found near their schools.
Donald Mitchell, ranger for north-west Sutherland, said: “It was very surprising to all of us just how many different species of mammals we saw. Some were recorded in trail cameras others were recorded by their tracks and signs.
"We had some lively discussions in the classroom about what mammals used to live in the Highlands many years ago, some now teetering on the brink of survival like the Scottish wildcat, and what the future holds of all our precious mammal species.”
The prize for the winning school, donated by the RZSS, will be free entry for the class to Highland Wildlife Park at Kincraig, and will include a special polar bear feed.
Elsewhere in the competition, the winning individual entry was by a stunning painting of a fox by Ava Gunn at Golspie Primary School.
Special commendation was also made to Tarbat Old Primary School, Portmahomack.
The ranger service theme for schools in 2023 will be wildflowers and their importance for pollinators in the Highlands.
