Fully revised for the first time in nearly 20 years, Hostile Habitats, now expanded to 424 pages and featuring more than 370 photographs, explores Scotland’s mountain environment with new research, photography and expert insight into the wildlife, landscapes and habitats that make the hills so unique.
The Scottish Mountaineering Press is delighted to announce the publication of the third edition of Hostile Habitats: A Guide to Scotland’s Mountain Environment, edited by Nick Kempe and Mark Wrightham, on Monday 14 December 2026.
First published in 2006, this much-loved guide to Scotland’s mountain wildlife, climate and landscapes is written for outdoor enthusiasts by some of the country’s leading experts in their fields. Contributors include Jonathan Gregory and Richard Essery on mountain climate and Stuart Benn on mountain birds.
Fully revised and updated, the new edition has grown from 256 to 424 pages and has been redesigned throughout. It is far more extensively illustrated, with over 370 photographs – 85% of those in the main chapters are new, many taken specifically for the book, with digital photography replacing most of the original transparencies. Refreshed diagrams and brand-new watercolour artwork complete the new look.
The text is written in an accessible style, with identification guides throughout, and the effects of global warming now run as a thread through the whole book.
Mark Wrightham and Nick Kempe, co-editors, said: “Science moves on and so does nature, and each chapter has been updated to reflect the latest research. … There have been a number of significant recent shifts in land use, partly in response to climate change, and the chapter on the Future of Our Mountains has been substantially revised to reflect their impacts. Taking all of these changes together, the book now looks and ‘feels’ very different to the previous edition.”
The book covers climate, geology, the shaping of the landscape, vegetation, invertebrates, birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish, and the human traces left on the hills. Each subject is followed by an identification guide to what hill-goers are most likely to see. A closing chapter looks to the future, as land use, renewable energy development and a changing climate continue to affect the mountain environment.
Mark Wrightham and Nick Kempe added: “Our uplands and lowlands are, however, more interlinked than they may appear. … with sympathetic management, the Scottish uplands can make essential contributions to the health of our wider environment. Undisturbed blanket bogs and wet heaths, for example, can store immense quantities of carbon in their peat soils, helping to counteract the effects of climate change, and healthy upland catchments can help reduce flooding and ensure clean water supplies in the lowlands.”
Hostile Habitats encourages hillgoers to take a deeper look at what they find around them, building knowledge and fostering respect in places that are at once resilient and fragile – something that matters more than ever as our hills see unprecedented volumes of human traffic.
Since it first appeared, Hostile Habitats has filled a gap in mountain literature: a book about the upland environment itself, rather than about routes or adventures.
Mark Wrightham and Nick Kempe added: “Much of our mountain literature … is not primarily about the environment itself, and focuses instead on routes, logistics or tales of derring-do. … For those who take more than a passing interest, Hostile Habitats remains the only generic guide to our mountain landscapes and wildlife, and the processes that make them tick. Its continuing popularity seems to reflect an ongoing need, and a desire for deeper connection with the mountain environment, among new generations of keen hillgoers.”
Hostile Habitats: A Guide to Scotland’s Mountain Environment is a book by hillgoers, all still active, for hillgoers, young and old.
Whether readers are just discovering Scotland’s hills or know their contours intimately, Hostile Habitats will deepen their appreciation of these special places and the habitats they support.
Review Copies / Interviews available through Scottish Mountaineering Press
Book details
- Title: Hostile Habitats: A Guide to Scotland’s Mountain Environment
- Editors: Nick Kempe & Mark Wrightham
- Publisher: Scottish Mountaineering Press
- Publication date: 14 December 2026
- Edition: Third
- ISBN: 978-1-907233-65-4
- Format: Hardback, 170 × 235 mm portrait, 424 pages
- Price: £27.50
- Cordee code: CWN570
- Hostile Habitats (third edition) is available to pre-order – https://scottishmountaineeringpress.com/product/hostile-habitats-third-edition/
About the editors
Nick Kempe has been exploring Scotland’s mountains since the age of six. He has served as President of the Mountaineering Council of Scotland, Chair of Mountain Leader Training UK and a Board member of Scottish Natural Heritage. He represented mountaineers in the negotiations that led to the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003. He writes widely on the management of Scotland’s mountains and runs the campaigning blog Parkswatch Scotland.
Mark Wrightham has been a hillwalker, climber and off-road cyclist for 45 years. After a spell as an upland ecologist, he worked for Scottish Natural Heritage and NatureScot for 24 years, latterly as Policy & Advice Manager. He was closely involved in launching Scotland’s outdoor access rights and was Secretary of the National Access Forum for its first ten years.
