19-668: Glen Roy is a valley in the Scottish Highlands.. Glen Roy or Glenroy may also refer to: Glen Roy Glen Roy ( Scottish Gaelic : Gleann Ruaidh , meaning "red glen" ) in the Lochaber area of the Highlands of Scotland is a glen noted for the geological phenomenon of three loch terraces known as the Parallel Roads of Glen Roy . The terraces formed along the shorelines of an ancient ice-dammed loch that existed during
38-519: A brief period (some 900–1,100 years in duration) of climatic deterioration, during a much longer period of deglaciation , subsequent to the last main ice age (the Devensian ). From a distance they resemble man-made roads running along the side of the glen, hence the name. Much of the glen is designated as a national nature reserve . Glen Roy runs north from Glen Spean which takes the main A86 trunk road and
57-562: A pattern of decreased uplift towards the northwest. The gradient of shoreline tilting (between 0.11 and 0.14 m/km) is similar to measured regional tilts of a well-developed marine shoreline (the Main Rock Platform) considered to have been produced in Scotland during the same period of extreme cold climate. Consideration of the ice-dammed lake shoreline data also points to the former occurrence of two separate episodes of tectonic activity during
76-596: A series of ice-dammed proglacial lake shorelines produced during the cold climate of the Younger Dryas (GS1). It has been demonstrated by Dawson, Hampton, Harrison, Greengrass and Fretwell (2002) that each lake shoreline exhibits evidence of glacio-isostatic tilting associated with the decay of the last (Late Devensian ) ice sheet. The directions of tilting of the three shorelines (in the quadrant between north and east), are at variance with published glacio-isostatic uplift isobases based on marine shoreline data that suggest
95-564: Is mainly due to Scotland's natural habitats being more intact than in the rest of the UK. Most NNRs in Scotland are also designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest . Many also form part of the Natura 2000 network, which covers Special Protection Areas and Special Areas of Conservation . Additionally, some of the NNRs are designated as Ramsar sites . National nature reserves were first created under
114-544: The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 . In 1996 the public body responsible for Scotland's natural heritage , Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH – since renamed NatureScot ), undertook a review of NNR policy that took account of the availability of other designations conferring legal protection, such as site of special scientific interest , special protection area and special area of conservation . It
133-562: The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 as containing habitats and species of national importance. National nature reserves can be owned by public, private, community or voluntary organisations but must be managed to conserve their important habitats and species, as well as providing opportunities for the public to enjoy and engage with nature. There are currently 43 NNRs in Scotland , which cover 154,250 hectares (1,542.5 km ), or less than 1.5% of
152-644: The NNR designation in Scotland has been through a partnership group, comprising representatives of existing reserve management organisations and community land groups, chaired by NatureScot. NatureScot remains responsible for the statutory declaration of national nature reserves. NatureScot is responsible for designating NNRs in Scotland and for overseeing the maintenance and management of each reserve. The majority of NNRs are directly managed by NatureScot; however, some are managed by, or in co-operation with other bodies. The NNR partnership consists of nine bodies: Details on
171-456: The Parallel Roads continues to this day, both among earth scientists intrigued by the dramatic processes that shaped that landscape, and among tourists attracted by the natural wonder of the landforms. Glen Roy is a national nature reserve (NNR), managed by NatureScot . Glen Roy was acquired by the then Nature Conservancy in 1970 and declared a national nature reserve in order to protect
190-535: The Younger Dryas (Greenland Stadial 1 - GS1). In the 19th century, the Parallel Roads attracted the attention of many early geologists, including the Reverend William Buckland , Charles Lyell , James Nicol , Charles Babbage , James Geikie , and Joseph Prestwich . This interest ensured that the Parallel Roads featured prominently in the development of geological science. Charles Darwin visited
209-527: The core areas of the Lochaber Geopark . A pair of historic lifting stones can be found in Glen Roy [1] these are 137kg (The 'Grey Mountain') and 133kg (Sister Red). The exact location is as follows: [2] an example of a full shoulder lift can be seen here: [3] National nature reserve (Scotland) The national nature reserves ( NNRs ) of Scotland are areas of land or water designated under
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#1732868671340228-725: The glen in June 1838 and, drawing on his recent findings in South America during the Beagle expedition concluded that the shorelines were raised beaches of marine origin. His paper on the subject was published in 1839 in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society . This was contradicted in 1840 by Louis Agassiz 's Glacial theory which postulated that the Glen Roy shorelines had been cut by freeze-thaw processes of loch ice during
247-488: The land area of Scotland. They range in size from Corrieshalloch Gorge at 7 ha to Mar Lodge Estate , which covers 29,324 ha. National nature reserve status is an accolade awarded to the best nature reserves in Scotland, and the selected sites provide examples of nationally or internationally important species and habitats. NNRs are intended to showcase Scotland's nature, and as well as being well managed for wildlife they must be managed to provide opportunities for
266-601: The maximum extent of glacial ice in the climatic reversal known as the Younger Dryas / Greenland Stadial, or locally the Loch Lomond Readvance. Darwin defended his paper over many years. In 1861 Thomas Jamieson was advised by Lyell and Darwin about visiting the Glen, and given memoranda and maps by Darwin. After visiting the glen a second time in the summer of 1862, Jamieson wrote to Lyell on 15 August reporting his findings. On 6 September Darwin told Lyell and Jamieson that he
285-552: The public to visit and enjoy them. NNRs therefore generally have facilities such as visitor centres and trails to allow visitors to explore and understand the habitats or wildlife they contain. 19 of the reserves NNRs have IUCN Category II (national park) status, including, Glen Affric , Rùm , Abernethy Forest and the Great Trossachs Forest . There are no reserves with this status in England, Wales or Northern Ireland. This
304-610: The railway of the West Highland Line , both running about a further 23 kilometres (14 mi) southwest via Spean Bridge to Fort William . The village of Roybridge and Roy Bridge railway station are sited where the River Roy joins the River Spean , and from there a narrow single-track road runs north up the glen for almost 16 kilometres (10 mi) to Brae Roy Lodge. The Parallel Roads of Glen Roy, Scottish Highlands, represent
323-470: The site against proposed afforestation. Whilst Glen Roy is also protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), at that time this accolade offered much weaker protection than it does today. Protection now comes from both its SSSI and NNR status. The NNR is designated a Category III protected area by the International Union for Conservation of Nature . Glen Roy is also defined as one of
342-475: Was convinced: "My paper is one long gigantic blunder". Jamieson's paper on his investigations was published in 1863. Four decades after Darwin's 1839 paper and shortly before his death, in a letter to Joseph Prestwich, he said that he gave up his Glen Roy theory when he read T. F. Jamieson's (1863) paper but he agreed with Prestwich's criticism of Jamieson's interpretation of the Glen Turret delta. Interest in
361-594: Was determined that NNR should possess four attributes: Additionally, it was determined that NNRs should be managed for at least one of three purposes: Between 2000 and 2003 the existing NNRs were reviewed against these criteria. Prior to 2004 there were 73 national nature reserves in Scotland, however a number have since been de-designated. New NNRs have also been designated, such as the National Trust for Scotland 's Glen Coe and Mar Lodge properties, which were both designated NNRs in 2017. Since 2012 governance of
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