BSCG welcomes Botanical Society initiative

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Written by Administrator

Category: Resources

Published: 23 April 2012

The first ever checklist of vascular plants of the Cairngorms National Park has been compiled based on an analysis of 281,000 botanical records collected and compiled by the BSBI. The Checklist : The Flora of the Cairngorms National Park - An Annotated Checklist by Andy Amphlett is intended to be of interest and use to local and visiting naturalists, landowners and managers, professional agencies and visitors. Hopefully it will also be a stimulus to further recording. The Checklist is made freely available as a download from http://www.bsbi.org.uk/site_floras.html

The Checklist is available in summary pdf format, and as an Excel file. The latter provides the greatest flexibility for assessing the flora of any individual site against the CNP as a whole. This provides a powerful analytic tool to assess conservation significance, and will hopefully inform development decisions.

Heath cudweed Gnaphalium sylvaticum one of the scarce
plants BSCG has found at at a threatened site in Carrbridge.

The Checklist lists 1699 unique taxa, plus 34 aggregate taxa. 67.8% of taxa are native to the CNP, 6.4% archaeophyte (ancient introductions to GB) and 25.8% neophyte (recently introduced aliens). 123 taxa are endemic to Great Britain, of which 19 are endemic to the CNP and a further 57 endemic to Scotland. 1428 taxa (82.4%) have been recorded over the last 25 years, 1987 – 2011, while 106 taxa (6.1%) have not been seen since before 1970.

The table below summarises those native and archaeophyte taxa:

• Of international or national conservation concern.
• Rare in the CNP.
• Not recorded for >25 years in the CNP.
• Whose hectad (10km grid square) frequency in the CNP indicates that the CNP population is of moderate, high or very high significance within Great Britain.

The next phase of this project will be to compile a Cairngorms National Park Rare Plant Register. This will list the most recent record at each known site, for all c.758 taxa which are of national conservation concern or that are rare in the CNP.

BSBI especially through its system of vice-county recorders provided the bulk of the data. In the acknowledgements to his Check list the author lists the support provided by BSBI and Scottish Natural Heritage in undertaking the project. He further thanks NESBReC, NTS, RSPB, FES, and individual recorders for additional records and Tim Rich, Bert Reid and Mark Hill for support. Andy Amphlett and those who have helped him produce this important checklist are to be congratulated.

Capercaillie Talk: Boat of Garten

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Written by Administrator

Category: Cairngorms National Park

Published: 16 April 2012

RSPB's caper project officer (Tim Poole) is giving a public talk on capercaillie on Monday 30th April at 7.30pm in Boat of Garten Community Hall.

Strathspey supports most of Scotland's population of this, one of most endangered and extraordinary birds.

The entry charge £4.50 (£4.00 for RSPB members) includes refreshments. Please note this talk is not organised by BSCG and is the first of a series of wildlife talks on Monday evenings in Boat of Garten Community Hall.

Illustrated Talk: Mussels - A Story of Culture, Crime and Conservation

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Written by Administrator

Category: Meetings

Published: 15 April 2012

Illustrated Talk by Dr Iain Sime SNH, Freshwater Specialist.

Carrbridge Village Hall Wednesday 25 April 7.30pm

All welcome ~ Free ~ Donations welcome

Further information Tel 01479 821491

Please download and print event poster.

Standing up for Keystone Ant Species

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Written by Administrator

Category: Resources

Published: 14 April 2012

Wood ants are one of the most important ecological players in Caledonian pinewood forest and are also found in forest edge and some rich lowland heathland and bog woodland habitats. These 'keystone species' can be viewed as good indicators of the health of some of our most iconic habitats.

The narrow headed ant has its most northern known UK population  at
Carrbridge where this photo was taken on a threatened site.

In Strathspey we have all the four kinds of wood ants that occur in Scotland, including the largest and most northern known surviving population of the narrow headed ant (Formica exsecta) in the UK. This ant is a UK Red Data Book 1 species. Two of our wood ants, the hairy or northern wood ant and the Scottish wood ant (F. lugubris and F. aquilonia), are on the Scottish Biodiversity List. This list contains species considered by Scottish ministers to be a priority for conservation (for purpose of the Nature Conservation Scotland Act). The blood red slave-maker ant (F. sanguinea) is believed to have declined in recent years in our district and tends to make a less elaborate nest than other wood ants and is easiest to find on sunny days in relatively open habitats.

The shining guest ant (Formicoxenus nitidulus) makes its home in the nests of various wood ants. It is considered to be at the northern limit of its range in the UK in our district, where it is rare. The gallows spider (Dipoena torva) feeds on wood ants. Both these species associated with wood ants are also on the Scottish Biodiversity List. The gallows spider has been found on two sites controlled by developer Tullochs. Both these sites are currently threatened by inappropriate development and are included in the legal challenge taken against the local plan of the Cairngorms National Park Authority. At least two species of wood ant are also found on the threatened An Camas Mor site.

With other organisations that recognize that wood ants need friends BSCG is supporting the wonderful wood ants initiative see:

www.woodants.org.uk
www.facebook.com/pages/Wonderful-Wood-Ants

Planning Democracy: Invite your Councillor to become a keynote listener

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Written by Administrator

Category: Resources

Published: 05 March 2012

Planning Democracy campaigns for a fair and inclusive planning system in Scotland.  The charity will hold its conference, 'Planning: The People's Perspective' in Edinburgh on April 21.  Not content with inviting anyone with an interest in, or experience of, land use planning in Scotland to attend, P.D. hopes we will invite our elected representatives to become “keynote listeners” at the event and hear how those who experience the Scottish planning system first hand feel about it.

Clare Symonds, founder of Planning Democracy says of the conference:

“Scotland's planning system is weighted against ordinary people, the very people who will be affected and who should be able to influence it.  It is time to rebalance the system and give people more rights and to make it far more inclusive than it is. This conference intends to show how ordinary people experience the planning system and to gather people together to work together to make it fairer.”

At the conference you will

• hear how well the planning system works for ordinary people,
• hear Planning Democracy’s views on how to campaign for a more inclusive system
• hear other people's views on the planning system

You will have the opportunity to

• meet other people and exchange experiences of planning
• attend workshops on a variety of issues from access to justice, planning appeals, to making complaints and Freedom of Information
• work with Planning Democracy to campaign for change where it is needed.

The conference is affordable (£10) and is held on a Saturday in central Edinburgh, close to the train and bus stations. Refreshments and lunch are included in the price.

Representatives from organisations such as The Information Commission, the Public Services Ombudsman, the Directorate for Planning and Environmental Appeals (DPEA) as well as legal firms and environmental NGO's such as Friends of the Earth  will be attending and providing afternoon workshops.

For more information follow this link.