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Dunan, Isle of Skye

Built to catch fish, there are many of these simple U and V shaped structures around Scotland鈥檚 coastline. Most people driving by don鈥檛 give these rather unexciting piles of stones near Dunan in Skye, a second glance. Their use certainly implies a much greater abundance of fish in inshore waters than are now there. The waters were so rich, that shoals were herded into the fish traps at high water and when the tide went out trapped by either nets or wicker gates. They are difficult to date, for this technique has been used all round the world since remote prehistory, but some of the ones on Scotland鈥檚 west coast have been in use until comparatively recently. It is thought they may date to the phase of the Highland Clearances when communities were moved onto the coast so they could subsist on the sea's resources.

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