Scottish Wildlife_Issue 109_Mar 2023

Number 109 | March 2023

TAKING ACTION

Empowering people, place and communities

FEATURE: The mysterious world of night-time pollinators

FIRST WORD

From Chief Executive, Jo Pike

Spring arrives and, with it, a feeling of renewal and hope. It’s a feeling that comes not only from nature itself – with the fresh buds on the trees and the welcome sounds of birdsong acting as a reminder of nature’s remarkable ability to thrive when only we let it. But it’s also a time of year to take heart from the many people doing their bit to help nature’s recovery.

From the individuals embarking on a journey to empower their communities to take action to people like Tom and Mary Harwood who have been volunteering at The Miley for more than 20 years (all of which feature in Rich Rowe’s article on page 16), there is no shortage of inspiration.

There are many ways in which the support of our members (and others) is enabling the Trust to act for biodiversity across Scotland. On our wildlife reserves, volunteers work with staff in a joint effort to protect more than 250 nationally important species and habitats, from the internationally significant populations of seabirds on Handa Island to the rare lichen, bryophytes and fungi at Ballachuan Hazelwood – a wonderful example of Scotland’s temperate rainforest.

Rightly, people are growing increasingly concerned about the crisis facing nature, with one in nine species in Scotland facing a risk of extinction. This trend will show no signs of slowing down until collectively, across the whole of society, we act decisively to reverse the decline.

Bringing about the change we need at the scale required will mean big decisions from politicians, as well as active efforts from ordinary people and action from businesses large and small. This provides a range of ways for people to get involved.

Working together with Scottish

Environment LINK, for example, we have been running a campaign called Farm for Scotland’s Future. When we met recently with the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands, Mairi Gougeon, we were able to share messages from people like you about why the future of farming matters. You can read these messages online at farmforscotlandsfuture.scot Meanwhile, to raise awareness of the issues facing our marine environment, our team has produced an extremely well-received new film called Oceans of Value. Featuring interviews with local people in Orkney, it explores their relationship with the sea, how they have seen the marine environment change and how

they would like to see it managed in the future. You can help raise awareness by sharing the film, which is available on our website, and encouraging people to talk about it.

Living at this time in history presents us with a unique responsibility to act for nature. Being part of the change we need to see can take many forms, from practical outdoor tasks to campaigning, awareness raising and helping to educate the next generation.

Whether it’s volunteering with your local Scottish Wildlife Trust group, supporting our campaigns or finding other ways to incorporate nature into your daily life and the conversations you have with others, every action counts.

Living at this time in history presents us with a unique responsibility to act for nature.

Volunteers constructing a boardwalk on Handa Island

©

Danni Thompson

Inside this issue

Scottish Wildlife magazine is published by the Scottish Wildlife Trust. © Scottish Wildlife Trust. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the express permission of the publisher. All photography © Scottish Wildlife Trust unless otherwise stated. The Scottish Wildlife Trust accepts no liability for omissions or incorrect data in advertisements and letters. Views expressed in Scottish Wildlife are not necessarily those of the Scottish Wildlife Trust.

ISSN: 0143 1234.

Registered office: Harbourside House, 110 Commercial Street, Edinburgh EH6 6NF. Tel: 0131 312 7765. Fax: 0131 312 8705.

Email: enquiries@scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk. Website: scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk. The Scottish Wildlife Trust is a company limited by guarantee, registered in Scotland (no. SC040247). It is also a Scottish registered charity (no. SC005792). Scottish Wildlife is published three times a year: March, July and November.

The Scottish Wildlife Trust is affiliated to The Wildlife Trusts, a UK-wide network of 46 Trusts with more than 2,000 wildlife reserves.

06

LOWLAND GRASSLAND

A look at this vital, but dwindling, species-rich habitat.

08 NEWS

16

20

News round-up from the Trust and the world of conservation.

TAKING ACTION

Rich Rowe explores how volunteering with the Trust has the power to enrich people, place and communities.

MICROVOLUNTEERING

Our top 10 ideas for ‘microvolunteering’ activities to help Scotland’s wildlife.

Q&A

22

24

28

With Roger Owen, Chair, Aberdeen & Aberdeenshire Local Group.

THE NIGHT SHIFT

Anna Levin delves into the mysterious world of night-time pollinators.

VERTICAL FARMING

Tanveer Khan outlines an innovative solution to the challenges of reforestation.

BIG PICTURE

31

Jamie McDermaid captures a striking image of a yellowhammer close to home.

32 WATCH OUT FOR

Things to enjoy in the coming months.

34 VIEWPOINT

Wildlife artist Jane Smith on why small beasts are just as compelling as big ones.

Volunteer gardeners at the Ayrshire Food Hub © Martin Shields/Scottish Wildlife Trust

Deadlines for news: 1 January, 1 May, 1 September. No unsolicited articles please. Scottish Wildlife is free to members. Membership rates from 1 April (excluding discounts for paying by Direct Debit): Individual (concession) £40 (£18); Joint (concession) £47 (£24); Family £57; Watch £18; Life (joint) £900 (£1,300); World/Overseas £45.

Patron: The former Duke of Rothesay. Chair: Linda Rosborough.

Vice-Chairs: Tim Duffy, Ian Jardine, Bill Lambert.

Chief Executive: Jo Pike

Managing Editor: Pete Haskell editor@scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk

Contributing Editor: Rich Rowe

Design: Connect connectcommunications.co.uk

Advertising: Elliot Whitehead 0131 561 0021, Clare Stebbing 0131 561 0024.

Printing: InkMark – inkmarkltd.com

Spotlight: Early purple orchid

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT:

EARLY PURPLE ORCHID

Orchis mascula

One of the first orchids to bloom, the early purple orchid often arrives with the bluebell. Its flower spires are typically magenta, although white flowers sometimes occur.

When first in bloom, the plant has a delightful scent (think lily-of-thevalley meets blackcurrant) but once pollinated its smell becomes more like tomcat urine.

The plant has many wonderfully descriptive local names, including goosey ganders, kecklegs, adder’s meat, bloody butchers and dead man’s fingers.

Known in Gaelic as Gràdh is Fuadh (‘love and hate’), eating one of the plant’s two tubers was believed to cause a person to either love you (large tuber) or hate you (small tuber).

In the 19th Century, the orchid’s dried tubers were ground into flour and mixed with honey, spices and hot water or milk to make a drink known as ‘salep’ or ‘saloop’.

© Chris Gomersall/2020VISION

GRASS

FROM THE

PAST

GRASSLAND covers around a third of Scotland’s land mass but not all grassland is created equal. Much of it is farmed grassland that has been fertilised or ‘improved’ for feeding livestock. It is a land use that increases yields of meat and milk but often reduces biodiversity, with just a few fast-growing species of grass crowding out slowergrowing varieties.

Far less common today is so-called unimproved, and species-rich, lowland grassland that relies on the continued use of traditional farming methods to maintain good health.

Such grassland is often clearly visible; these are the meadow areas that remain full of wildflowers, sedges, mosses and a variety of grasses. Increasingly reduced to areas that farm machinery cannot reach, they

EARLY PURPLE ORCHID

Although not as widespread as it once was, early purple orchid readily adapts to a variety of habitats, from cliff-top grassland and hay meadows to ancient woodland. Standing up to 40cm in height, each plant can consist of as many as 50 flowers.

FIELD GRASSHOPPER

Often spotted throughout the summer in sunny, grassy areas, especially gardens, male grasshoppers can be seen displaying to females by rubbing their legs against their wings to create a ‘song’ – a single chirrup repeated at short intervals.

MEADOW PIPIT

Although numbers have been in decline since the 1970s, the meadow pipit remains our most common songbird in upland areas where its high, piping call is a familiar sound. They are known for a fluttering ‘parachute’ display flight during the breeding season.

WAXCAP FUNGI

Appearing in an array of vibrant colours, the grassland-loving waxcap belongs to a family of mushrooms known for their waxy, slippery-looking cap and gills. Growing only in soil rather than woody material, there are around 50 different species in the UK.

Spotlight: Lowland grassland

are a riot of life and colour – the purples, yellows and whites of wild thyme and knapweeds, bird’s-foot-trefoil and yellow rattle, sprays of meadowsweet and swaying oxeye daisies.

The continued existence of such grassland vegetation requires careful balance. It needs just enough grazing or cutting to prevent it from turning rank and overgrown, but not so much that flowers are unable to seed. Many grassland plants require small, open spaces to germinate, which is why grazing is so vital.

The very best grassland – and therefore the most biodiverse – contains a variety of microhabitats, with a mix of tall and shorter plants favoured by different species of pollinating insects plus a variety of other wildlife that come to feed, nest or shelter.

RESERVES

Here are five wonderfully biodiverse grassland reserves to visit over the coming months:

A BO’MAINS MEADOW

OXEYE DAISY

Tall and striking, the oxeye daisy thrives in meadow landscapes, roadside verges and field margins. Appearing from July to September, its large blooms are so bright that they appear to glow in the evening, leading to its other common name, moon daisy.

Located near Bo’ness, West Lothian, this reserve features two meadows – the northern meadow, a former reservoir that has been filled in, and the southern meadow, which is now a fine example of a species-rich grassland. Wildflowers include butterfly orchid and twayblade.

B AUCHALTON MEADOW

An orchid-rich grassland on the site of 19th Century lime workings near Crosshill, Ayrshire, Auchalton Meadow is a haven for wildflowers and pollinating insects in the summer. Signs of old kilns, spoil mounds, tracks and a small quarry add further interest.

C FEOCH MEADOWS

One of the key sites for butterflies and moths in south-west Scotland, Feoch Meadows has a mix of dry and wet grassland, fen meadow and mire. There is an orchid-rich area near the Feoch Burn, while the use of traditional livestock farming ensures an abundance of wildflowers.

D FLEECEFAULDS MEADOW

Fleecefaulds Meadow is a mosaic of species-rich grassland, fen meadow and scrub woodland near Cupar, Fife. In summer, wildflowers such as globeflower, twayblade and cowslip attract many different species of butterfly. Look out too for brown hares grazing in the meadow.

E KELTNEYBURN

FIELD VOLE

Present in huge numbers but rarely seen, the grass-tunnelling field vole is our most abundant mammal and a vital link in the food chain. The field vole’s diet is dominated by the leaves and stems of grasses, but it has also been known to eat moss.

Located near Aberfeldy, Perthshire, this is a place for orchid-lovers with eight species found on the reserve, including fragrant orchid. Unsurprisingly, the orchids and many other wildflowers are a magnet for butterflies, with common blue and small pearl-bordered fritillary often sighted.

Spotlight: Lowland grassland

Auchalton Meadows © Gill Smart, Early purple orchid © Jim Higham, Field grasshopper © Philip Precey, Oxeye daisy © Jon Hawkins/Surrey

Hills Photography, Meadow pipit © Mark Hamblin/2020VISION, Waxcap fungi © Vaughn Matthews, Field vole © Margaret Holland

Prioritising peatlands

PEATLANDS store twice as much carbon as all the world’s forests combined – but are among the most endangered habitats on earth.

These waterlogged ecosystems are home to highly specialised, rare and threatened plants, birds and insects. Peatlands are the perfect environment for colourful sphagnum mosses and insectivorous plants such as sundews to thrive. They also provide food and shelter to a multitude of insects and vital basking sites for a range of amphibians – but peatlands are even more than this.

As well as carbon sequestration and storage, healthy peatlands reduce the risk of flooding, limit the spread of wildfires and provide fresh drinking water.

However, when damaged, peatlands are no longer able to help protect us from flooding, the water they provide is polluted and they release thousands of tonnes of carbon back into the atmosphere.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of peatland restoration and its Peatland Action grants are vital to fund major restoration works. But once this work is complete, the essential task of peatland management remains.

Our reserves team must regularly maintain and repair dams and bunds, monitor water levels and vegetation, and hand-pull tree seedlings whichleft unchecked – will suck the peat mass dry. This year-round management is costly and does not easily attract grants. Please donate today and support the conservation and restoration of one of Scotland’s most endangered habitats.

Alan Anderson, Head of Reserves

Latest news

News from the Trust, our projects and the wider world of conservation

All

Inspiring lives community action

Donate at scottishwildlife trust.org.uk/ scotpeat

IN January, the first cohort of participants embarked on the Pioneers Programme as part of the Trust’s Nextdoor Nature project.

Involving a combination of online learning, interactive webinars and in-person events, this free skills development course takes place over six months. The programme aims to provide participants with the understanding, resources and confidence they need to organise action for nature where they live.

The first cohort is made up of 12 people from seven community areas in Ayrshire, Renfrewshire, Lanarkshire and south Glasgow.

“After nearly a year of development, we’re delighted that the first cohort is underway,” said Pete Haskell, the Trust’s Head of Communications & Engagement, who is leading the project.

“Plenty of people want to do more to help wildlife but knowing where to start can be a major barrier.

“Through the Pioneers Programme we are providing participants with the broad range of skills and understanding required to mobilise their communities

to take action for nature. Taking this ‘community organising’ approach to our engagement work will mean a longer lasting impact in a larger number of places across Scotland.”

As well as the direct benefits to nature, empowering communities to take action in this way will provide other benefits. These include improved health and wellbeing of those involved and a greater sense of community pride and spirit in the local area.

The Nextdoor Nature project is funded by the National Heritage Lottery Fund. Completing in June 2024, the project will see the Pioneers Programme delivered to a further two cohorts – one to communities in and around the Forth Valley (applications will open at the end of March) and one to those between Dundee and Aberdeen. In addition, the project team will develop an online showcase for community nature projects.

For more on this programme and wider volunteering with the Trust, see the lead feature on pages 16-19.

© Pete Haskell/Scottish Wildlife Trust

The first cohort of participants enjoy a walk around Castlemilk Woods, Glasgow

Sunset at Costa Head cliffs, Orkney

Music inspired by landscapes

MUSIC inspired by the landscape of the northwest Highlands – and composed as part of a commission from the Coigach and Assynt Living Landscape partnership – won Original Work of the Year at the MG Alba Scots Trad Music Awards in November.

The work by the Talamh Beò (Living Land) collective saw a quartet of musicians – Mary Ann Kennedy, Finlay Wells, Nick Turner and Donald MacLean – immerse themselves in that part of the north-west before creating music, words and stunning visuals.

The musicians’ efforts were interrupted by lockdown but, rather than admit defeat, they decided to adapt and spent the next 18 months working remotely, reading, listening, zooming... and creating.

The result is a hymn to people and place – a celebration of communities, language and culture.

You can listen to the work at watercolourmusic.co.uk/Projects/CA

Seeing the sea

THE Trust’s Living Seas team has launched a film as part of its Living Seas project that features interviews with local people in Orkney to understand their relationship with the sea, how they have seen the marine environment change and how they would like it managed in the future.

Premiering at Kirkwall’s Pickaquoy Centre in January, Oceans of Value forms part of the Trust’s wider work around marine planning and community engagement to demonstrate how communities can be involved in shaping marine policy.

“Our Oceans of Value film captures the values and opinions the local community place on their surrounding seas and offers up wonderful insights into traditions and hopes for future generations,” explained Rebecca Crawford, the Trust’s Stakeholder Engagement Officer.

“While quantitative data helps the Trust tremendously, the voices of the local community are just as valuable,

if not more, in helping to inform our work on Scotland’s seas.”

The film has been made to inform the Trust’s wider Oceans of Value project, which aims to take an innovative approach to capturing the values placed on the marine environment. The research was funded by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and the John Ellerman Foundation, with additional support from the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

A Marine Natural Capital Assessment has already been carried out to map the natural capital assets on Orkney’s marine environment, to identify the ecosystem services they provide and those of most importance to the community.

A report combining the outcomes of the assessment, the film and further stakeholder consultation is expected this spring.

Oceans of Value is available to watch on the Trust’s YouTube channel and via the green streaming platform, EcoFlix.

Stairway to Heathery Haven

THE coastal path at Heathery Haven, part of the Trust’s Longhaven Cliffs Wildlife Reserve, has new wooden steps (pictured) thanks to £25,000 of funding from Aberdeenshire Council’s Coastal Communities Challenge Fund.

The work, which took place in November, included the replacement of a section of dilapidated steps and drainage improvements along the path. The old and new materials had to be airlifted by helicopter due to the steepness of the site.

The reserve’s path offers spectacular views along a 4km stretch of the Buchan coast between Peterhead and Cruden Bay, with 60m-high pink granite cliffs studded with inlets, stacks, caves and arches.

“The improvements will enable more people to have an enjoyable walk to take in the stunning coastal scenery, marine life, seabirds, coastal heath wildflowers and insects that are all found on the site at different times of year,” said Rab Potter, Reserves Manager for North East Scotland.

© Rab Potter

Hills are alive

A survey of the species-rich grassland at Rahoy Hills by botanists Alison and Ben Averis has revealed 39 new species, including 14 liverworts, 13 mosses, 8 forbs, 3 graminoids and a lichen. The Trust manages Rahoy Hills with the Ardtornish Estate, with joint efforts to remove sheep and cut deer numbers helping to improve the biodiversity of this important grassland habitat.

Ranging for nature

The Trust’s Aberdeen & Aberdeenshire group has secured £15,000 from the Aberdeenshire Voluntary Association Just Transition Fund for its Ranging for Nature project. The funding will be used to equip volunteers with tools, teach nature conservation skills, establish a native tree and wildflower nursery, plus provide training and equipment for schools.

Watching wildlife

A Wildlife Watch group has been established by Perth and Kinross Countryside Trust. The group, for children aged eight to 12, meets for two hours on the second Saturday of every month. Each event features different wildlife or seasonal themes so there is something new for participants to experience throughout the year. For more, visit scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/ things-to-do/wildlife-watch

Squirrels in focus

A TOTAL of 659 people took part in the 2022 Great Scottish Squirrel Survey in October, with 255 greys and 510 reds spotted – more than triple the number of sightings usually reported in a typical week.

The survey, which ran as part of the Trust-led Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels (SSRS) project, confirmed that the red-only population in the Highlands remains safe and free of grey squirrels thanks to efforts to protect the Highland Boundary Fault Line.

It also confirmed that reds are successfully returning to areas of Aberdeen and that there remains a mix of both species in the south of Scotland.

“We are deeply grateful to all volunteers and members of the public for submitting their sightings during this year’s survey,” said Nicole Still, Programme Manager for SSRS.

“Sightings of both species are vital for informing our work and we strongly encourage people to continue reporting sightings throughout the year.”

Electrek explorers

The Trust’s eight snorkel trails are featured on Electrek Explorer: Recharge in Nature, a new eco-friendly travel app designed to help visitors explore Scotland’s most beautiful places using electric vehicles and electric bikes. Learn more at electrekexplorer.com

AGM notice

Our 59th Annual General Meeting will be held on Saturday 9 September. Full details, including how to book, will be announced in the July issue of Scottish Wildlife

Encouraging youth conservation

THE Trust’s Living Seas Team is busy preparing to take part in this year’s Sea Scotland Conference, which will take place in June at the Edinburgh Climate Change Institute.

This year’s forum includes a range of pre-conference events being organised by a youth-led task force, supporting young people between the ages of 18 and 25 in joining the conversation around marine policy in Scotland.

The events, which include one at the

In a less positive development, squirrelpox has been detected in a number of reds in Johnsfield just outside Lockerbie, with at least 10 animals found dead in the area.

Squirrelpox is a virus carried by greys but which does not appear to affect them, though is often fatal for reds. Outbreaks of squirrelpox have been known to cause local populations of reds to crash.

“This is a particularly vulnerable time for red squirrels as they prepare for the mating season and increase contact with one another,” explained Andrew Hodgkinson, Project Officer for SSRS.

“We have deployed our emergency squirrelpox outbreak response measures, and locals can expect to see an increased staff and volunteer presence in the area as we increase grey control efforts in the region in a bid to stem the outbreak.”

Report sightings of red and grey squirrels at scottishsquirrels.org.uk

Trust’s Montrose Basin Visitor Centre, will give young people a chance to discuss sustainable solutions to the issues facing the marine environment and have those ideas heard by leading marine policymakers.

For more, visit seascotland.scot/ about-sea-scotland-2023

© Raymond Leinster

The 2022 Great Scottish Squirrel Survey saw a great response

A diver above a bed of sea squirts

A thank you to volunteers

Saving the pond mud snail

THE Trust’s Red Moss of Balerno reserve just outside Edinburgh is playing a key role in improving the overall conservation status of the pond mud snail.

A particularly small species of freshwater aquatic snail –adults are about the size of a fingernail – the pond mud snail typically lives in ponds, marshes and small ditches.

Like many invertebrates, the snail plays a key role in its ecosystem, eating dead vegetation and turning it into nutrients that are then returned into the wider food chain.

The species was once found across Britain but, due to habitat loss and pollution, its distribution in Scotland is now limited to a handful of sites, including Red Moss of Balerno.

THE Trust would like to record its thanks for a European programme, sadly now ended, that has involved volunteers from 13 different countries who have provided an immense contribution to the Trust’s work throughout Scotland.

Since 2014, the Trust has welcomed 66 long-term volunteers with European Commission funding through its Youth in Action, European Voluntary Service and, latterly, European Solidarity Corps programmes.

These volunteers have been recruited through 10 separate projects with a total project value of more than £600,000. The programmes provided an opportunity for young people between the ages of 18 and 30 to spend up to a year living and working in Scotland.

Many of the volunteers had a relevant academic background and were looking to develop their environmental skills and knowledge by undertaking practical reserve work.

Most projects placed European volunteers with Reserve Project Officers in four regions across Scotland, although some were placed in Trust visitor centres at Loch of the Lowes and Montrose Basin.

Even using a conservative estimate, their work donated to the Trust has been worth an extra 40 full-time equivalent roles over the lifespan of the programme.

As a result of their placements, many volunteers became highly employable, with the Trust even employing two former volunteers – Erika Pöltz Faggiani was seasonal ranger on Handa for two years, while Beth Harwood was employed as a Reserves Project Officer in the North, managing the same sites she worked on as an Erasmus+ volunteer.

The programme has provided a wonderful opportunity to recruit and work with good quality, long-term and full-time volunteers and the Trust will greatly miss the end of the programme in the UK.

The reserve is near the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s (RZSS) Edinburgh Zoo, where an ambitious conservation breeding project for the pond mud snail is underway.

Since the breeding programme began in 2017, the zoo has become home to a growing population of the snails. Alongside BugLife Scotland, RZSS coordinated a small-scale release of the snails at Red Moss of Balerno in 2018, but the ambition is to ramp up breeding to enable much larger-scale releases.

For more, visit rzss.org.uk

Rare sighting

This

even be

first

© Beth Harwood

One of the pond mud snails bred at Edinburgh Zoo

Elisabeth Baudoul from Belgium was our last European Solidarity Corps volunteer

NEIL Robertson, a crofter who lives on Eigg – an island with which the Trust has a long association – spotted a serin among his regular garden visitors in November.

type of finch has never been recorded on the island before and may

a

for the Highlands (there is one other unverified record).

© Daniela (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Riverfly survey

ONGOING monitoring of the ecological health of the River Clyde as it passes through the Falls of Clyde Wildlife Reserve has revealed strong numbers of cased caddisfly larvae. These freshwater invertebrates are a key prey item for fish and birds such as dippers. In all, more than 2,000 larvae were among the invertebrates discovered during a single month’s monitoring in July last year.

For the past two years, the Trust has carried out a timed kick sample to collect freshwater invertebrates from this stretch of the river. This sampling technique disturbs the sediment in different microhabitats within the river channel and the displaced invertebrates are then collected.

The monthly sampling provides a valuable snapshot of how different species may vary in number throughout the year and gives a reliable chance of catching a pollution incident. All data is fed into the Riverfly Partnership, a network of organisations working together to monitor the health of the UK’s rivers.

For information on how to get involved in monitoring the health of your local river, visit riverflies.org

Pioneering proposals

FIVE projects from around Scotland have been selected to receive £4,000 to further develop their Riverwoods Pioneers proposals – an opportunity to identify Riverwoods projects that have the potential to be financed using new mechanisms beyond traditional grants.

The five projects are: Annan Riparian Restoration Network, Upper Tay Catchment Communities, Glenfalloch Nature Restoration, Don’t let Balloch Castle Country Park Sink, and the River Ericht Catchment Regeneration Initiative. Led by the Trust, in partnership with the Democratic Society and the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, the overall aim is to develop investment-ready Riverwoods projects, taking an inclusive and innovative approach that will help deliver scale in the longer term.

Two final demonstrator projects will be selected to compete for £250,000 of funding from the Scottish Government, with a final decision in mid-March. Find out more at riverwoods.org.uk

Congratulations to Bloomin’ Wild

CUMBERNAULD’S Bloomin’ Wild volunteer group has been awarded the Silver Gilt medal for the Small City Category and overall Best Small City discretionary award in the 2022 Beautiful Scotland awards.

The group showcases the work that people across the town undertake to

build an appreciation for local green spaces and a desire to care for them in the long term. The entry was developed by the Trust-led Cumbernauld Living Landscape, its partners and local communities.

Run by Keep Scotland Beautiful, the award scheme recognises the time, dedication and passion volunteers have to improve the green spaces they care for, while also connecting them with their communities.

Nectar Network continues to flourish

The Trust has received £90,000 from NatureScot’s Nature Restoration Fund and £20,000 from The Fairways Foundation for work on the Irvine to Girvan Nectar Network project along the Ayrshire Coast.

This will be used to further establish wildflower habitats in the area throughout 2023. As part of the initiative, Project

Officer Lynne Bates has been working with Scotland’s Farm Advisory Service and two farm project partners to produce short films that highlight the benefits of hedgerow restoration and mob grazing for farmers.

The films can be viewed on the Irvine to Girvan Nectar Network project page on the Trust’s website.

© Scottish Wildlife Trust

© Jim Jeffrey

Kick sampling along a stretch of the river

© Mark Hamblin/2020VISION

On Wednesday, Jean helped protect osprey chicks.

On Thursday, she helped plant trees for red squirrels.

On Friday, she helped change the law to safeguard our land and seas.

Make your wishes live on by writing us into your Will.

Jean’s gift to the Scottish Wildlife Trust in her Will was a simple yet powerful way to keep her wishes alive. You can do the same.

On Saturday, it was five years since Jean passed away.

Once you’ve taken care of your loved ones, please consider including a gift to the Scottish Wildlife Trust in your Will. No matter how big or small, you can be sure it will make a difference to Scotland’s wildlife.

To find out more, email legacies@scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk or visit scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/legacy

Native tree genetic diversity

EFFORTS to preserve the genetic diversity of Scotland’s native trees have taken a significant step forwards with the identification of 98 potential new sites for gene conservation.

A recently published report by NatureScot, written in partnership with the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, looked at the climatic range of native trees in terms of rainfall and temperature to identify the best places to protect their genetic diversity – essential in terms of resilience to pressures such as climate change and tree diseases.

A gene conservation unit (GCU) is a clearly mapped area of forest or woodland where dynamic gene conservation is one of the main management priorities for one or more tree species.

There are currently five GCUs in Scotland, representing four species of tree – Scots pine, silver birch, sessile oak and rowan. NatureScot’s report now identifies a further 98 locations, adding seven species: alder, downy birch, hazel, ash, juniper, aspen and English oak.

Third beaver translocation

RSPB SCOTLAND has moved a family group of seven beavers to the Loch Lomond National Nature Reserve.

This makes it the third location in Scotland where a beaver translocation has taken place since the Scottish Beaver Trial in Knapdale in 2009, which was led by the Scottish Wildlife Trust and Royal Zoological Society of Scotland.

The pair of beavers and five offspring (two yearlings and three kits) were moved from an area in Tayside as part of plans to speed up the return of beavers to the site.

Revised Scottish Biodiversity Strategy

THE Scottish Wildlife Trust has been an active contributor to discussions that have shaped the revised draft of the Scottish Government’s new Scottish Biodiversity Strategy. The strategy outlines 26 priority actions to restore the natural environment and halt the loss of biodiversity by 2030.

Priority actions will focus on accelerating nature restoration, expanding and improving protected areas, supporting nature-friendly farming, fishing and forestry and recovering vulnerable species

– all based on the principle of tackling the nature and climate emergencies together.

The strategy is designed to deliver landscape-scale change, underpinned by statutory targets that will hold future governments to account.

There will now be an opportunity for stakeholders to further consider the revised strategy alongside the consultation on the delivery plan which will be launched in spring 2023, with the final documents published in summer 2023.

UK’s first free-roaming bison

A HERD of European bison released into a small area of Kent woodland in July as part of a controlled trial has expanded both in size and range.

Initially, three female bison were released into West Blean and Thornden Wood near Canterbury as part of the Wilder Blean project – a joint wilding project between the Kent Wildlife Trust and Wildwood Trust.

The group grew in September when one of the females unexpectedly gave birth, with all four animals later given extended access to more than 50 hectares of forest.

Just before Christmas, the animals became a fully-formed herd with the arrival of a bull imported from Germany.

The aim of the project is to demonstrate

how bison can serve as ecosystem engineers, with their natural behaviours helping to boost woodland biodiversity.

Despite their size, bison are peaceful animals whose ability to fell trees by rubbing up against them and eating the bark, dust-bathing and creating corridors through the woodland gives space for other plants and animals to thrive.

Although European bison were never native to the UK, the extinct Steppe bison and other wild grazing animals once were.

Fundraising is now underway for the next phase of the project, which will involve the installation of tunnels that will allow the bison to access more than 200 hectares, the full range of the woodland site.

© Evan Bowen-Jones

© John MacPherson/2020VISION

The Wilder Blean herd of bison

© Mark Hamblin/2020VISION

Bottlenose dolphin mother and calf

Dive in to discover diverse and fascinating marine life

Visit the colourful critters of the North Argyll Snorkel Trail with Basking Shark Scotland

LAST summer the Scottish Wildlife Trust, in collaboration with Argyll & the Isles Tourism Cooperative, launched the North Argyll Snorkel Trail. The trail encompasses many different areas across the region, with a cluster of sites around Oban.

The unique fjord-like, mountainous and island-peppered coastline of Argyll covers more than 4,800km, providing a lifetime of snorkelling adventures hidden below the waves.

The diverse snorkel trail highlights sites that are easy to access, with suggested spots where different experience levels – from beginners to advanced snorkellers – can enjoy the diversity of marine life on offer along its coast.

One of the main habitats to enjoy is the kelp forest, best explored at low

water for the finest views around the canopy. The kelp fronds are home to many tiny marine creatures. Some of the more colourful critters can include the four-striped nudibranch (pictured right), a beautiful yellow and white sea slug that grows to around 4cm long. You can even see their egg cases, looking like little white crowns.

Some of our other favourite marine species are the blue-rayed limpet, a tiny marine snail with electric blue stripes along its shell, and another sea snail known as a painted topshell, whose pink and white spiral adds a further flash of colour to the underwater landscape.

Although most of the snorkel sites have been selected for their calm conditions, there can still be areas of

current, run-off and waves. Always make safety your number one priority when snorkelling. In Oban, you can take a snorkel course with Basking Shark Scotland to learn practical and planning skills, and take a guided snorkel around the trail.

The Ultimate Wildlife Encounter

Basking shark and wildlife adventure boat tours from Oban, Scotland

For 10 years Basking Shark Scotland has been leading the way offering eco-conscious wildlife adventure tours in the Hebrides and beyond.

Our passionate and dedicated team of marine biologists are here to show you the wonders of Scotland’s wildlife.

Our unique basking shark swims support our research and conservation – escape with us on an adventure with a difference.

www.baskingsharkscotland.co.uk

TAKING ACTION

Alove of wildlife, personal attachment to place, health and wellbeing, camaraderie. The reasons people have for volunteering are rich and varied, often depending on available time and personal circumstance. But all speak to the same truth – give to a place and that place gives back, often exponentially.

For Mary Harwood, her involvement in volunteering was sparked by a deep connection. A recent recipient, together with her husband Tom, of the Trust’s Lifetime Achievement Award, Mary has spent the past 22 years helping to transform the Miley – part of a disused railway line close to Dundee city centre – from an impassable, mile-long rubbish tip into a tranquil haven for wildlife and people.

During this time, the tireless husband and wife team have organised weekly litter picks, dreamt up fundraising activities and welcomed school and nursery groups to the Miley. In doing so, they have helped raise the site’s profile, making it relevant to local people so that they also value and care for it.

“I was born nearby and used to play close to that railway line when growing up, waving at the trains going past,” recalls Mary. “I would take the train to Blairgowrie for the berry-picking season and, later, when the line closed, my brother and I would walk along the banking on our way to school. When I heard that the Trust was looking for volunteers to help there, I had to get involved.”

Mary’s enthusiasm soon extended to Tom, who embraced the site with equal verve. “At first I didn’t have the same emotional attachment but I do now because of all the work that we have done,” he says.

Today, the fly-tipping that once blighted the area is now a thing of the past, although volunteers still undertake weekly litter-picking to keep on top of any rubbish that finds its way into the sheltered site. Other than that, nature is left largely to take its course.

A green artery through the city, the Miley is now a place of walkers and wildflowers, cyclists and songbirds – and all just a stone’s throw from the car dealerships and industrial sites that hum and throb all around it.

“Most cities are losing these wild places but today the Miley is a true wildlife corridor,” says Mary.

GREEN GYM

Mary and Tom’s words will likely chime with Jim Mitchell, a retired banker from Carluke, who shares a similar devotion to the nearby Falls of Clyde, a prominent Trust reserve some 140 kms to the south-west at New Lanark.

For the past 15 years, Jim has been a regular member of the reserve’s Tuesday Group, a band of volunteers who come together to carry out a range of work at the site. A keen hill walker for many years, it has given him his outdoor fix – “my green gym”, as he calls it.

His involvement ranges from construction of boardwalks and repair of footpaths to helping with guided tours and children’s events, offering the personal interaction that can elevate a visitor’s experience and understanding of a place.

“Volunteering and the outdoors is not for everyone but there are so many other ways to contribute,” he says. “I’ve always seen myself as a people person, so I’ve enjoyed that part of it, but there’s also a huge sense of achievement when a project has finished and you can see a physical thing at the end of it.

“Other volunteers have a huge range of skills, so you can learn all sorts and not just about conservation. I’m hopeless

Whether giving a little or a lot, volunteering with the Trust has the power to enrich people, places and potentially entire communities, writes Rich Rowe

Jim Mitchell (front) splitting wood at the Falls of Clyde

© Clare Toner/Scottish Wildlife Trust

with technology and tools but over the years I have learned a huge amount.”

That learning is something that Harry Richards sees almost daily within the volunteer groups he manages in his role as Ayrshire Community Engagement Officer. Volunteers can

choose between a long-running group that meets for a full day’s practical conservation work every Wednesday, a wellbeing-led Time Out Thursday group that meets for a less strenuous two hours, plus a monthly Sunday session that caters for those who do not have time during the week and with a focus on community green spaces rather than Trust reserves.

Over the past 18 months, Harry has also run a popular Voluntary Wildlife Reserve Warden scheme which lets people ‘adopt’ a local Trust reserve, visit in their own time and report back on any issues or wildlife sightings.

All activities are designed to engage local people in wildlife and in caring for green spaces, with volunteers gaining skills and knowledge that can feed back into protecting habitats in future. Work includes woodland and wildflower meadow creation, willow coppicing, hedge-laying and removal of invasive species – all measures that improve habitat,

There’s a huge sense of achievement when a project has finished and you can see a physical thing at the end of it.

© Mary Harwood

Colourful murals at the Miley Wildlife Reserve

© Martin Shields/Scottish Wildlife Trust

Volunteers at Gailes Marsh Reserve, Ayrshire

increase biodiversity and enhance people’s experience of each site.

“Some also help me with wildlife surveys and public events,” adds Harry. “It’s just another aspect to volunteering rather than the usual practical conservation work that we do.”

Each group is distinct, with different hours, days and type of work done, although the edges are pretty blurred, feels Harry. “Overall, it’s just people outside, talking to each other and doing something positive for the environment,” he says. “It’s really that simple.”

EYES AND EARS

One beauty of volunteering is that people can put in as much time and energy as they are able, although some voluntary positions demand more from people than others.

As the Trust’s Perthshire Ranger for the past four years, Raz Rasmussen’s responsibilities include managing summer residential volunteers at Loch of the Lowes alongside a year-round team of conservation volunteers.

However, as thoughts turn to the anticipated return of some very famous birds, at this time of year it is the make-up of the Osprey Watch team that is the primary focus.

Each season, the Trust employs four Species Protection Officers who live on-site. Mostly young people taking their first steps into a conservation career, their primary role is to assist Trust staff

with protecting the osprey pair from the point of laying eggs to hatching and beyond. It is a 24-hour effort that is supplemented by a pool of around 6o Osprey Watch volunteers.

Initially, the Osprey Watch began as a response to the threat of egg thieving which, although not the same threat today, still exists. The modern-day equivalent to collecting is disturbance at a critical time for chicks from photographers looking to get the perfect image of ospreys at the nest.

“While most are great, we’ve had problems with some photographers trying to get close to the nest in the past,” explains Raz. “We also have more people accessing the loch itself on paddleboards and canoes, so there is just more pressure on the area generally. Having additional eyes and ears thanks to our volunteers is a big help and eases pressure on staff.”

Incredibly committed, many of the volunteers have come to Lowes for years. Some live locally and volunteer several times a week, while others travel from much further afield. Often, they come early or late as the loch is waking up or going to sleep, enabling them to record and experience moments that few people get to see – perhaps a goldeneye displaying in the morning, red squirrels leaping from branch to branch or beavers coming and going from their lodge.

Unsurprisingly, the benefits to mental health are mentioned time and again.

“Volunteers can put everything else in their world aside for a moment and be

present,” says Raz. “We have a young schoolteacher who comes through from Glasgow for an early shift. She sits for a couple of hours and then goes to work. She describes it as her ‘reset’.”

COMMUNITY FOCUS

Of course, every volunteer involved at Loch of the Lowes and other sites takes their stories and experiences back to their communities – giving even more value to the Trust in doing so.

That community side is the thrust of the recently launched Nextdoor Nature Pioneers Programme, now under way across the greater Glasgow area.

Supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the programme is part of a movement-wide initiative that focuses on encouraging more community-led nature recovery projects across the UK.

In Scotland, the Trust’s approach has been to design a learning programme that equips people and communities with the skills, tools and opportunity to take action for nature in whatever way best fits where they live.

Training involves a mix of online learning – covering topics such as the basics of nature, how to establish community groups and fundraising techniques – plus a series of in-person events and webinars.

With funding in place until June 2024, three cohorts of a dozen participants

Last year’s Osprey Watch chick fledging celebration at Loch of The Lowes

© Pete Haskell/Scottish Wildlife Trust

© Sven Rasmussen

By giving participants the skills and confidence to engage, it enables communities to decide what they would like to see happen for nature.

will each gain six months of training. The first, from across the Greater Glasgow area (see news story on page 8), met in January and will be followed by a second group in the Forth Valley and a third from Dundee to Aberdeen.

Empowering people to take a leadership role within their communities is a different approach for the Trust.

“Rather than telling communities what they should do for nature, the programme is built around the premise

of ‘community organising’,” explains Lola May, Partnerships Officer for Nextdoor Nature. “By giving participants the skills and confidence to engage with their communities as well as the basics in wildlife ecology and conservation, it enables communities to decide what they would like to see happen.”

The goal is that by the end of each six-month programme, people are in a position to change things in their local community to make a difference for

nature and themselves. “The thing that unites the participants is that they want to see change – with what that change looks like totally up to them,” adds Lola.

PEOPLE POWER

Such an initiative emphasises how volunteering and taking action for nature, in whatever form it takes, is often more about people than wildlife.

That is certainly the case back in Dundee, where the Miley has been transformed from a place to be avoided to somewhere that is treasured. It has become different things to different people – pupils from a special needs school who now have direct access to the site, visitors from a mental health charity in Dundee, secondary schools that use it as an outdoor classroom, and local people just passing through on the way to work or to stretch their legs.

“It has given all those involved a real sense of achievement seeing an area brought back to life, with local people now feeling a sense of ownership,” reflects Tom Harwood.

“It makes me feel very proud,” adds Mary Harwood. “I can say that I had a hand in starting this.”

For more on volunteering with the Trust, visit scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/volunteer

Tree planting at Cathkin Braes as part of the Trust’s Nextdoor Nature Pioneers Programme

© Mary Harwood

Rich Rowe is contributing editor of Scottish Wildlife

Walking the Miley

MICROVOLUNTEERING

With life for many feeling more hectic than ever, not everyone will be in a position to give a significant portion of their time to a cause they are passionate about. But if that sounds familiar, fear not, there are still ample opportunities for you to help through microvolunteering: bite-sized, on-demand, no commitment actions that benefit a worthy cause. Activities can take almost no time at all and

can be squeezed into even the busiest of schedules. It may not seem much, but each and every action counts –and together they can combine to create something truly powerful.

And with ‘great oaks from little acorns’ very much in mind, here are ten ideas for microvolunteering activities that will all make a valuable contribution to the health of Scotland’s wildlife and habitats. ■

Squirrel spotting

If you spot a red or grey squirrel, it’s quick and easy to submit your sighting to the Trust-led Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels project, which relies on public sightings to help keep track of population spread. scottishsquirrels.org.uk

Two-minute litter pick

Whether on the beach, at your local wildlife reserve or along your street, taking two minutes to collect and dispose of litter makes somewhere much more attractive and removes the threat of rubbish to wildlife.

Point out problems

If you notice some recent fly-tipping on a reserve, a broken gate or a mistake on our website, telling us about it via our online contact form is enormously helpful. We can’t be in all places at all times, so having additional eyes and ears to report issues means we can act on things in good time.

Share the love

People can only take action about things they are aware of. By talking to friends and family, sharing social media posts and passing on your copy of Scottish Wildlife once you’ve finished reading it, you will be helping to spread the conservation message.

Plant for pollinators

From a large garden to a window box, planting flowering plants packed with pollen and nectar can go a long way towards supporting a whole range of pollinators (including night-time ones, see page 24).

MICROVOLUNTEERING

Share your actions on social media this International Microvolunteering Day – Saturday 15 April.

Record your sightings

Scientific research, policy developments, conservation action – all of these require data to evidence and support decisions and findings. By recording your sightings, you will directly contribute to the national species database. irecord.org.uk

Help ID species

If you enjoy exercising your ID skills from time to time, iSpot from the Open University is a great place to head. Not only will you help solve someone’s mysterious sighting but you’ll also add to the vast pool of knowledge provided by others. ispotnature.org

Sign petitions

Adding your support to a petition is a small task that has the potential to make big changes happen. The more voices that speak up for nature, the more likely they are to get heard.

Write to your local councillor

The role of a local councillor is to represent public interest within their constituency. By writing to your local councillor expressing your interests in conserving Scotland’s wildlife, you will help shape their view of what is important within their area. gov.uk/find-your-local-councillors

Respond to consultations

Consultations range in size from small local planning developments to changes in national policies and responding to these can have a direct impact on whether or not something gets approved. nature.scot/about-naturescot/consultations

&

Q A RogerChair,Owen

Aberdeen & Aberdeenshire Local Group

With a long and successful career in the environment sector, what made you decide to volunteer for the Scottish Wildlife Trust in your free time?

I began volunteering with the Trust before I retired as Head of Ecology for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), as I recognised the great work that was happening locally. That soon translated to accepting the chairing role of my local group and then to a spell on the Trust’s Conservation Committee.

What drives me is the pursuit of better recognition by decision-makers of the invaluable roles of volunteers in caring for the natural environment and my work with the Trust fits really well with this personal ethos.

You’ve been involved with the Trust’s Aberdeen & Aberdeenshire Local Group for more than 15 years. What have you seen change over that time?

Is it really 15 years? That has flown by! When I joined my local group, the chair was an inspirational leader who encouraged local systematic biological recording, helped negotiate new Trust reserves and was hot on tracking and commenting on local development planning.

Over my time we first developed more of an awareness raising and educating role and now we are very actively pushing a collaborative, inclusive approach with local community groups to upskill them for conservation projects all over our area.

The group was recently successful in securing a grant of £15,000 – what project will that help to deliver?

We are very excited by our success in persuading residents to vote for our Ranging for Nature project.

We intend to use the funding to equip community volunteer groups to carry out their own conservation projects with our advice and oversight, plus build a volunteer-managed tree nursery to provide local provenance deciduous trees for our reserves and for other projects.

Finally, we will also purchase and loan wildlife monitoring equipment to schools and other groups to raise interest in wildlife to new levels.

With increasing demands on people’s time and the cost-of-living crisis affecting us all, what words of advice would you have for people who are considering volunteering? Modern life is often pretty stressful and, for many people, it is very difficult to find ways to escape from it that are also fulfilling and contributory.

I know volunteers from all walks of life, working or retired, young or old, busy professionals and those just seeking something useful to do.

What they have in common is a feeling of having achieved something for nature and being with like-minded people. It’s good for the soul as well as for wildlife.

Finally, what’s your favourite volunteering task and why?

For me, my biggest thrill is working with a brilliant group of people who love organising events to make conservation accessible to many more people.

The enthusiasm of my local group committee is highly infectious and ideas roll off them continuously.

Other than that, I enjoy training volunteers to identify aquatic invertebrates and give them the skills to monitor their local river quality. I’m a great supporter of citizen empowerment through knowledge!

For more on the Trust’s Local Groups, visit scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/local-groups

AdobeStock

© Roger Owen

Longhaven Cliffs near Peterhead is one of the Trust reserves local to the group

Do something great for wildlife.

Want to play your part and raise money for the wildlife in your community? From challenging yourself with a sponsored run or walk to spreading the word with a birthday collection, there are plenty of ways for you and your loved ones to get involved.

You can find out more by contacting fundraising@scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk or visit scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/helpwildlife

Nocturnal pollinators

night The shift

While more than ever is known about daytime pollinators, there is still much to learn about the species that perform this vital function once day has turned to night, writes Anna Levin

While preferring to fly in bright sunlight, the hummingbird hawk-moth will also take to wing at dusk, dawn and even at night

Picture pollination and the image that comes to mind is likely to be a buzzing bee in a brightly coloured flower, not a moth reaching its long tongue into a pale flower beneath the glow of moonlight.

Of course, bees – including honeybees, bumblebees and solitary bees – deserve the credit for their starring role in pollination. But at a time of growing concern about the global loss of pollinators, it is important to acknowledge and understand the entire cast that perform this vital work.

The unsung heroes of pollination in Scotland include hoverflies and many other fly species, wasps and butterflies.

We know least of all about the night shift, including beetles and especially moths, as the importance of nocturnal pollination has been under-recognised.

with colour and scent, while others lace their nectar with narcotics to ensure intoxicated pollinators hang around.

VITAL ROLE

Pollination is, of course, vital to human life. As well as the importance of wild plants and healthy ecosystems, more than three quarters of the world’s food crops need insect pollinators to ensure the quality and quantity of production.

In Scotland, this includes many economically valuable crops such as oilseed rape, berries, apples and beans.

While much agricultural produce in the UK relies on commercially purchased honeybees, the additional attention of wild pollinators ensures higher, healthier yields with wider genetic diversity.

Given this dependence on insect pollinators, we face two alarming trajectories – exponential growth in human population and catastrophic collapse of insect populations.

As such, it’s never been more important to better understand the role of pollinators and the many complex interactions that take place between plants and insects that create a healthy ecosystem.

The Trust is a partner in Scotland’s National Pollinator Strategy, which aims to address the threats faced by pollinators and create conditions for them to thrive.

Pollination is how flowering plants reproduce – pollen grains need to travel from the male to female parts of a flower, carrying the genetic information for fertilisation and so seed production.

Most plants rely on insects and animals to transfer pollen and go to elaborate lengths to make themselves attractive to potential pollinators, offering nectar treats in return.

Scent, heat, colour, mimicry and even electrical fields – with some insects sensing the weak electric fields generated by plants by the way their hairs are deflected – are all used as lures to augment the promise of nectar.

One particularly dramatic example of this kind of plant-pollinator adaptation is Titun arum, or the ‘corpse flower’, from Sumatra, a star of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh’s glasshouses. Its enormous flowers open at night with the colour and scent of decomposing flesh to entice specialist flies and beetles.

Rather more attractive to human senses is the orchid family, with individual species around the world having evolved flamboyant techniques to attract specialised pollinators.

Some mimic bees and wasps, in form and pheromones, to encourage males to ‘mate’ with them. Another tempts mice

One of the key aims is to improve understanding of native pollinators and the services that they provide. “It’s surprising how little we know about what is actually pollinating what,” notes Athayde Tonhasca, a Terrestrial Invertebrates Advisor at NatureScot. And when it comes to nocturnal pollination, it seems that the knowledge gaps are particularly great. “We do know

Nocturnal pollinators

that many plants are pollinated by beetles, which are also active at night,” he says. “Beetles visit flowers to eat the pollen but are messy enough to drag some pollen grains along with them that get dropped along the way as they move from one flower to another.

“There is a strong suspicion that rowan trees in Scotland are pollinated by beetles. Moths are our main nocturnal pollinators and their important role as pollinators is becoming increasingly recognised. We need more night owl ecologists to help us understand better their role in our ecosystems.”

Moths are the only known pollinators of some wildflowers, such as the greater butterfly orchid, which produces scent only at night. Night visits by moths, especially the large yellow underwing, also comprise more than a third of all pollinating visits to red clover.

As with daytime pollinating insects, when moths visit flowers to feed on nectar, they pick up pollen inadvertently on their mouthparts and bodies which is then transferred to other flowers.

Studies have shown that moths substantially increase pollination success in flowers that are also pollinated by day and – as they travel further distances than other pollinators such as bees – they help bring important genetic diversity to plant populations.

RELATIONSHIP BUILDING

Given the difficulties in targeting specific species, and because so many plants have numerous pollinators, the aim of the National Strategy is to embrace as many of these relationships as possible, increasing and enhancing habitat.

This approach is exemplified at a local level by the Trust-led Irvine to Girvan Nectar Network, a project that forms

Moths are our main nocturnal pollinators and their important role is increasingly being recognised.

Around a quarter of all UK beetles are pollinators, including the longhorn beetle

Planting as part of the Irvine to Girvan Nectar Network

© Lynne Bates

partnerships with local authorities, businesses and landowners to create and connect pollen-rich sites along the Ayrshire coast.

“The main method of monitoring pollinators is to undertake a flowerinsect count in a specific area on a warm, sunny day in summer, so learning about nocturnal pollination is a particular challenge,” notes Lynne Bates, the Trust’s Nectar Network Co-ordinator. “But many generalist flowers are visited by insects both day and night, so our aim is to enhance habitat for all pollinators.”

As part of its work, the Nectar Network has created a wildflower seed mix of local plant species which benefits the night shift as much as daytime pollinators. “Many of the flowers such as bird’s-foot trefoil, red campion and yarrow will be used for nectaring by moths,” says Lynne. “And, of course, improving habitat for pollinators is not just about flowers but the trees and shrubs that are important for their caterpillars. This means we’re also planting hawthorn, blackthorn, willow, alder, aspen and rowan, which all support moth caterpillars.”

ARTIFICIAL LIGHT

The causes of decline in pollinator populations are diverse, forming a cumulative cocktail in which each ingredient – habitat loss, pesticides, disease and climate change –exacerbates the effects of the others.

Nocturnal insects are particularly vulnerable to another growing ecological problem – the loss of darkness. Artificial light at night is now recognised as a serious form of pollution and one of the most urgent threats to global biodiversity.

As light is time in the natural world, the disruption of the fundamental patterns of day and night confuses the body clock within individual creatures and the interactions between species, causing

a cascading effect through entire ecosystems. Insects such as moths that are attracted to light can be disorientated and misdirected from food sources but also become more vulnerable to predation.

But there are also more subtle and insidious effects; light pollution impacts every stage of insect life, including hormone productions and breeding. It can also have adverse affects on the health of the plants that insects interact with.

Insects perceive light in diverse ways and subtle differences in what we see as the colour of light can have a big impact – such as the recent change from orange sodium street lights to whiter LEDs.

“It’s a complex field that merges physics and biology,” explains

Athayde. “Different wavelengths of light affect different species in diverse ways.

“But the safest thing to say is that artificial light itself is disruptive and less is better.”

The focus of the National Pollinator Strategy is on what we can actually do, whether as landowners or the public, to help our pollinators thrive.

While working to address the knowledge gaps on nocturnal pollination, there is a simple action that everyone can take to help the denizens of the dark – turn off the lights and keep artificial light at night to a minimum.

For more information on Scotland’s National Pollinator Strategy, visit nature.scot/doc/ pollinator-strategy-scotland-2017-2027

To get involved in the Nectar Network, visit scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/nectar-network

Anna Levin is a freelance writer specialising in natural history.

Nocturnal pollinators

It’s a complex field... but the safest thing to say is that artificial light is disruptive and less is better.

© Philip Precey

© Paul Pugh/Butterfly Conservation

The Burnished Brass moth is known to pollinate orchids at night

Birds-foot trefoil is used for nectaring by moths

VERTICAL FARMING

It will perhaps come as a surprise to many that the mountains, moors and glens synonymous with Scotland’s landscape are a relatively modern spectacle. Travel back to the end of the last Ice Age and the landscape was markedly different. As the climate became more temperate, woodland cover spread across the country, with birch the dominant species, gradually followed by hazel, oak and varieties of pine –with woodland ultimately covering up to 80 per cent of the land.

While many factors influence the make-up of Scotland’s biodiversity, nothing has had a greater impact than human activity. By 1900, just 5 per cent of Scotland was covered with woodland, largely as a result of agricultural practices.

While this is now more like 18 per cent, native woodlands often remain small and isolated. Those working to reintroduce Scottish native species often face challenges sourcing or growing seedlings in the quantities they require. This is particularly so for species such as Scots pine and aspen, the seeds of which are difficult to collect.

Additionally, climate change continues to pose a growing threat to Scotland’s woodlands, causing knock-on impacts such as rising temperatures, prolonged periods

of drought, wildfires and increased incidents of pests and disease.

Planting trees in the correct places – both for commercial and biodiversity benefits – is an important factor in tackling the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. However, to progress with tree-planting projects and meet ambitious targets set out by the Scottish Government to work towards net zero, there is a need to

produce high-quality, healthy and robust seedlings quickly and efficiently.

That is where vertical farming comes in. Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS), a global vertical farming infrastructure company headquartered in Scotland, has run trials over the past year in partnership with Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) to explore how growing seedlings in a controlled environment could potentially transform the sector.

Tanveer Khan from Scottish firm Intelligent Growth Solutions explains how vertical farming infrastructure is being used to provide innovative solutions to the challenges of reforestation

The automated system delivers the exact spectrum of light best suited to each plant

At the IGS Crop Research Centre in Invergowrie, Crop Scientist Csaba Hornyik and his team have successfully completed six trials growing tree seedlings in a fraction of the time it would take in a more traditional growing environment.

The trials have been run on native species including Scots pine, oak, alder, aspen, rowan, hazel and birch, and species important to commercial production such as Norway and Sitka spruce, Douglas fir and lodgepole pine.

The vertical farming system uses what is called ‘Total Controlled Environment Agriculture’ to give growers precise control over each element of the growing environment, including the water, nutrients and CO2 levels.

Crucially, the automated system can also build lighting recipes that deliver the exact spectrum of light best suited to the plant at a particular point in its growth cycle, so optimising results through the critical first few months of life.

As an additional benefit, growing tree seedlings in a vertical farm environment also significantly reduces water usage.

The precisely controlled environment means that the plants lose less water through transpiration than

those grown in polytunnels or glasshouses, while the machine also recycles all the water not absorbed by the crops, maximising efficiency and ensuring zero surface run-off.

As a result, it has been possible to grow broadleaf seedlings to between 40 and 50cm tall in only 90 days – something that in the field would take up to 18 months.

By growing under repeatable conditions, it is possible to produce a more consistent starter plant, which can then be grown on for one to two years outdoors in the field, before planting out into woodlands and forests.

While vertical farms are more commonly associated with growing herbs, leafy greens and vegetables, these trials have demonstrated that the technology can be applied successfully to a much broader range of crops. Working in partnership with FLS has allowed us to explore potential new applications and expand the portfolio of crops that can be grown within a vertical farm environment.

Excitingly, the initial results from the first batches of seedlings planted on into an outdoor environment have been hugely encouraging.

Work is now under way to refine lighting recipes to consciously slow

the growth rate in order to give seedlings chance to develop thicker root collars, making them more suitable for planting out in restock forests.

The proof of concept gained through these initial trials provides scope to build on the growth recipes through future trials to further develop the potential applications of our infrastructure and maximise the quality, robustness and viability of tree seedlings for reforestation projects.

Tanveer Khan is Head of Science at Intelligent Growth Solutions, headquartered in Edinburgh. intelligentgrowthsolutions.com

Vertical farming

Kenny Hay, Seed Resource Manager at Forestry Land Scotland, examines seedlings at the IGS facility at Invergowrie

It has been possible to grow seedlings to between 40 and 50cm tall in only 90 days – in the field it would take up to 18 months.

All images © IGS

THE BIG PICTURE Jamie

JAMIE McDermaid, 23, a photographer with a keen interest in the natural world –he recently graduated with a Masters in Environment, Culture and Communication from the University of Glasgow – spends as much time as possible capturing images of the wildlife found in and around Edinburgh.

His is a home patch that he knows incredibly well. “I live at the edge of the city near the Pentland Hills, so I take a lot of pictures of the wildlife found locally – including the badgers that visit my garden,” he says.

Jamie’s portfolio of images led him to work with the Trust on its Edinburgh and Cumbernauld Living Landscape programmes, charting the array of wildlife found in urban environments.

Like so much wildlife photography, this image of a yellowhammer nestled within a gorse bush was a mix of careful planning and blind luck.

“I was on a walk close to home when I heard the unmistakeable call of a yellowhammer – which sounds like ‘little bit of bread no cheese’ – coming from a large patch of gorse,” explains Jamie.

Pausing to listen more closely, he realised there were many different individuals all making the call. Seeing the potential of capturing an image of a yellowhammer perched among the bright yellow of the gorse, he decided to return to the same spot the following day.

“I positioned myself at the top of a small hill from where I could look down into the gorse with the sun shining in to provide backlighting,” recalls Jamie.“While I was taking test shots, trying to perfect my exposure and settings, a yellowhammer actually landed on the spot I was focused on.

“I didn’t pass up the opportunity and managed to capture this shot of the bird perched in some lovely golden light.”

For more of Jamie’s work, visit jamiemcdermaidphotography.co.uk

Camera: Nikon D5500; Lens: Nikon 200-500mm; Shutter speed: 1/800 sec; Aperture: f/5.6; ISO: 1400.

© Jamie McDermaid

Watch out for...

Some things to enjoy over the coming months

Wild Isles, presented by Sir David Attenborough

Television Book Book

BBC One, March

EVEN at the age of 96, there’s no stopping Sir David Attenborough. The doyen of nature documentaries returns to our screens this spring not with stories from far-flung places but instead offering a deep dive into the wealth of spectacular wildlife and habitat found throughout Britain and Ireland.

Filmed over a period of three years, and with trademark extraordinary footage, the five-part Wild Isles series begins with an introductory episode about British wildlife, followed by an episode each on four key habitat types: woodland, grassland, marine and freshwater.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the series takes viewers into the raucous heart of some of the UK’s internationally important seabird colonies but there are also some

delightful surprises: from ancient oak woodland – Britain has more ancient oak trees than the rest of Europe combined – to precious chalk streams and rare hay meadows.

And some of the wildlife is surprising too. The cameras home in on orcas patrolling northern seas, bluefin tuna gathering off the coast of Cornwall, mayfly hatching on a river in Wiltshire, black grouse and hen harriers courting in the Cairngorms, wild horses battling for access to females in the flatlands of Cambridgeshire and more.

“I can assure you that in the British Isles, as well as astonishing scenery, there are extraordinary animal dramas and wildlife spectacles to match anything I have seen on my global travels,” commented Sir David.

Maisie the Mountain Hare

Lynne Rickards and Abigail Hookham

Published by Floris Books

ISBN 9781782508410

Paperback £6.99

THE test of a good children’s book is whether or not the adult reading it also enjoys the story. With its effortlessly rolling rhyme and a trio of loveable characters, this delightful new book from Lynne Rickards more than passes this test.

But this book does more than just entertain. Introducing the concepts of camouflage and why having predictable seasons is vital for species that change colour in winter, Rickards expertly weaves in the ecological story of a mountain hare’s life spent high on a Scottish hilltop.

Whilst the author has several other bestselling books, such as SkyethePuffling and RowantheRedSquirrel, this might just be her best book yet.

Illuminated by Water –Nature, Memory and the Delights of a Fishing Life

Malachy Tallack

Published by Doubleday

ISBN 9780857528827

Hardback £16.99

A BOOK about fishing for people who fish, written in part for those who don’t, Illuminated by Water traces the author’s lifelong passion for the pastime.

It is a book that reflects on the inexplicable lure of the river and that contemplation of nature and landscape that comes with spending time at the water’s edge.

For Malachy Tallack, part of the appeal is that fishing enables – in fact, requires – attentiveness. It also demands extended periods of time in one place, which the author suggests is one reason why time spent besides water can be imprinted so sharply in memory.

“A place reveals itself only gradually,” he writes. “This can happen through repeated visits, through coming to know somewhere, slowly, as one might a person. But it comes most predictability during long stretches of near silent proximity.”

Gentle, thoughtful and beautifully written, this book will resonate with non-fishers and fellow devotees alike.

© Alex Board/Silverback Films

Orkney Nature Festival 14-21 May

GIVEN its fabulous range of wildlife and landscape, many people don’t need much excuse to visit Orkney – but if you really did need one, then the 2023 Orkney Nature Festival in May is as good as any.

Celebrating its tenth anniversary, this year’s festival begins with a NorthLink Ferries nature cruise around the island of Hoy. In previous years, the cruise ran as the festival finale but, following a two-year break due to the pandemic, this year it serves as a launch party for the week-long event.

A perfect introduction to the archipelago’s most rugged island, the cruise provides an opportunity to spot wildlife on land and at sea, plus admire the dramatic scenery – including the famous Old Man of Hoy.

Taking place on a variety of different islands, the Orkney Nature Festival is a true celebration of the county’s unique natural heritage and wildlife.

Events are coordinated by the local RSPB Scotland team and feature a host of nature-based activities organised by local groups.

The full programme will be announced in April. Visit facebook.com/OrkneyNatureFestival

Competition

Win a spa day for two

FANCY a relaxing escape in the heart of the stunning countryside of the Scottish Borders?

We’ve teamed up with Stobo Castle – Scotland’s only destination spa –to offer you a Simply Rejuvenating spa day for two people, worth more than £230.

The prize includes a delicious two-course lunch, use of spa facilities and guided walks – including the magnificent Japanese Water Gardens, where gentle waterfalls, lush plant life and zen-like landscaping will leave you with an overwhelming sense of calm.

You can also try optional aqua and fitness classes, with complimentary slippers and use of robes during your visit.

Situated near the charming town of Peebles, Stobo Castle is a rural gem surrounded by natural beauty.

For more information about Stobo Castle, please visit bit.ly/StoboCastleSpa

COMPETITION

For your chance to win, simply tell us: Which town is Stobo Castle situated close to?

Send your entries to Scottish Wildlife Trust Competition, c/o Connect Publications, Studio 2001, Mile End, Seedhill, Paisley PA1 1JS. Closing date is 28 April 2023.

T&Cs: Prize is offered subject to availability with no cash alternative. Prize is non-transferable and some blackout dates may apply. Minimum age at Stobo Castle is 14. Entry data will be used by Connect Publications solely for managing this contest.

Viewpoint

WHY is it that we find natural history programmes about big beasts so compelling? Whether it be lions on the plains of Africa, killer whales in Antarctica or jaguars in the Amazon rainforest, the unfolding drama of predator and prey reminds us how precious life is.

But watching it on a screen, you’re removed. You can’t smell the dust or feel the heat. Even when you see it for real, there’s a disconnect because it’s someone else’s wildlife. I know because I used to make wildlife films. At the end of filming we would leave the animals behind – and their conservation problems too. But everywhere I travelled there were threats to nature and that became depressing.

Now I’m a wildlife artist living on the west coast of Scotland. By getting to know this one part of the world rather than travelling, I feel a greater sense of belonging. Drawing helps me notice what is going on around me and I’ve witnessed dramas just as engaging as those in more exotic locations.

Last spring, a male wren started building beautiful mossy nests all around our garden. He showed the female his constructions and she chose the most suitable for her eggs. I hoped she would choose the one above our patio window, where the drama would unfold in full view of the kitchen, but she declined.

By summer the garden was busy with fledglings hunting for insects, and as the days got colder, I was delighted when they decided to roost in the unused nest above the door. Unlike many other birds, wrens don’t migrate and must find a solution to being so tiny in a cold country.

I watched their silhouettes at dusk as up to 12 wrens arrived in the creeper and waited their turn to stuff themselves into the elastic mossy sphere, where their shared body heat would protect them from the freezing temperatures.

Delight turned to dismay one morning when I found the moss torn open and

feathers scattered all around. A pine marten must have visited in the night and smelled out the concentrated food.

He didn’t get all of them, as next day I was relieved to see wrens hunting around our wood pile. Since then, I’ve provided them with a woven nest suspended where no predator can reach them.

My garden is a place where I can have a positive effect on wildlife. As soon as we dug a small pond, newts and dragonflies moved in. We scattered old tiles where the lawn grows wild, and in summer tangles of slow worms bask underneath. We leave thistles to go to seed and flocks of goldfinches feed there in autumn.

The influence of a garden isn’t just local. Leaving an overgrown corner for whitethroats or putting up nest

boxes for swifts means these international travellers can breed. It’s easy to become depressed about the state of nature, but I have learned that by starting small, it’s possible to make a difference.

For more on Jane’s work, visit janesmithwildlifeart.weebly.com

In our latest personal story exploring nature’s capacity to surprise, inspire and heal, wildlife artist Jane Smith reveals how she has learned that small beasts are every bit as compelling as big ones...

My garden is a place where I can have a positive effect on wildlife. We leave thistles to go to seed and flocks of goldfinches feed there in autumn.

Jane working by the shore

© Mark Smith

Goldfinches on thistles