A female wildlife warden working on a deserted island fled to the hills to escape an aggressive drunk who had just arrived as a volunteer.

Amy Corton's tranquil life as the sole resident on the remote Handa Island was rudely interrupted by the arrival of 39-year-old John MacAskill.

She was so scared by his drunken antics on his first day there as a voluntary worker that she absconded to the hills in the middle of the night.

Miss Corton, 27, fearing for her safety as MacAskill searched for her in the dark with a torch, found one of the few spots on the island that could pick up reception on her mobile phone to raise the alarm.

Her plea for help saw a squad of policemen on the Scottish mainland commandeer a ferry and make a midnight crossing in high winds and snow to save her. When MacAskill was finally arrested, he was transported off the island in a motorised wheelbarrow.

Ian Smith, the depute fiscal, told Dornoch Sheriff Court that the island of Handa was a sanctuary to many species of bird. Apart from Miss Corton and MacAskill, the island was otherwise unoccupied, with no telephone and limited mobile reception. The fiscal said that on April 5, Miss Corton had agreed to join MacAskill for a drink. But his behaviour “turned”.

“He became quite abusive to her. He said she was ugly and looked like a hippy. He called her a tree-hugging vegan. He pulled her woollen hat off her head and threw it across the room.”

She locked herself in a lavatory before escaping, but MacAskill came looking for her with a torch. When police arrived on a ferry they found MacAskill slumped in a chair. He was handcuffed but he began to struggle. He kicked out at Constable Ian Sutherland, who also suffered cuts to his wrists that later needed stitches.

MacAskill, of Cleland in Lanark, admitted committing a breach of the peace and placing Miss Corton in a state of fear and alarm. He admitted a second charge of desisting Constable Sutherland, struggling and kicking him to prevent his removal from the island.

Sheriff David Sutherland fined him £1,000 for the breach of peace and £500 for struggling with the officer.