This coming Saturday, Sustainable Cupar will be at the Cupar Market (now indoors at the Corn Exchange) – selling their River Eden Wildlife 2024 Calendars. We caught up with the group to find out more about their current projects and how the calendar is acting as a fund-raiser to help them with their work …

For the last year, Sustainable Cupar has been leading a steering group of four main collaborative partners …

• Sustainable Cupar
• Eden Angling Association
• Fife Coast and Countryside Trust; and
• St Andrews University (RESP)

As the lead group, Sustainable Cupar applied for a Nature Restoration Fund award from NatureScot to enable RESP to:

• Survey the River Eden Catchment
• Map the biodiversity and habitats
• Map the invasive species populations; and
• Engage with landholders/land managers on the River Eden Catchment

This has been with a view to a future delivery project to manage invasive species, plant riparian trees and help local communities up and down the river engage more with the Eden.

Community Engagement

To that end,  Sustainable Cupar has three community events planned for early 2024 – in Guardbridge, Cupar and Strathmiglo. We will share more once we have that information.

RESP have set up citizen science subgroups doing water testing and river fly monitoring: RESP want to do more work with schools, young people and local groups.

To help fund this work – as the River Eden Restoration Project – Sustainable Cupar has produced a 2024 calendar.

About the calendar …

The calendar is available to buy from Maisie & Mac and the Nationwide on Crossgate, Courtyard Books on Lady Wynd as well as at the Cerees Community Cafe. They will also be on sale at a Sustainable Cupar & Lucky Ewe stall that is sponsored by CuparNow at this Saturday’s Market in the Corn Exchange (1000-1400). The calendars are just £8 each and make great gifts for Christmas. The stall will also be selling bags of potatoes at £5 for Lucky Ewe.

On the calendar, it is explains …

The River Eden and its banks are home to many species of plants, animals and fungi – from otters to kingfishers and willows to sand martins. However, there are many smaller, but just as vital species that make the river a special place and often go unnoticed.

This calendar throws a spotlight on some of the less famous residents that make the banks of the Eden in Cupar their home. Look out for these invertebrates this year as you walk the river paths.

Sustainable Cupar is a volunteer community group set up in 2009 to help Cupar become a thriving, environmentally friendly town. The group was incorporated as a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation in 2011.

The aims of the group are to raise awareness of green issues and to promote and support change to a more sustainable lifestyle. We have sub-groups that concentrate on different themes: local fruit growing (Fruit and Blossom – FAB group), town development (planning and infrastructure), sustainable travel and sustainable energy.

The calendar highlights the wonderful biodiversity we have right here on our doorstep. The profits from the sale of this calendar will raise funds for the River Eden restoration project. All photographs taken by local naturalist Susan Falconer.

 

Need more?

More information can be found on the Sustainable Cupar website via this link. Better still, pop to meet their team at the Market in Cupar this Saturday (16th December from 1000-1400 on Crossgate).