SNH Area News
Northern Isles Correspondents: Kevin Riley, Jonathan Swale, Gail Churchill
Seal surveys
For the past few years, staff in the Lerwick office have been actively involved in monitoring the grey seal populations of Shetland. There are five main sites across the islands and these are visited several times throughout October and November. During each visit, staff count the number of pups, moulted pups and adults, so that they can work out population size and how many pups the adults are producing. Many of the sites are in remote
places and some can be accessed only from the sea, so we work with local fishermen and boat owners to find breaks in the autumn weather. It gives a welcome opportunity for office-based staff to test their sea legs, as well as offering a new perspective on familiar places. The island of Mousa is one such place. The seals on Mousa find their way surprisingly far inland, with pups hiding in burns, sheltering in the ruins of old buildings and basking on the grassy hillsides. The surveys show that the Shetland
population remains stable at around 3,000, and has done so for about 30 years now.We believe that the reason for this is the limited number of suitable pupping sites available.
Some like it cold
The winter of 2009/10 was the coldest for many years in Shetland, but for some of Shetland’s rarest plants it seems to have been a blessing. Norwegian sandwort (above) and Edmondston’s chickweed are arctic- alpine species that grow in a few places on Unst, including the Keen of Hamar NNR. Both are national rarities (in fact, Edmondston’s chickweed grows nowhere else on Earth), so we keep a close eye on their numbers. The populations of both plants can change dramatically from year to year, but a steady decline seemed to set in from the late 1990s. A look at the data gathered on the
Keen of Hamar NNR between 1978 and 2006 suggested a link between the changing populations and winter temperatures. The theory is that seeds lying dormant in the soil need a cold snap to make them start germinating. Warmer winters meant fewer
seedlings in the spring and their numbers fell as the older plants died – until 2010. The populations counted last year all showed an increase, which seems to bear out the theory and is a relief, at least in the short term. Unfortunately, it calls into question the long-term future for these little gems in a world of changing climate.
Viking revival
Last October saw the completion of the Viking Heaths Project in Orkney. This was a five-year scheme, which helped many farmers to manage and conserve maritime grassland and heaths across Orkney. Farmers were encouraged to
adopt conservation grazing, whereby flowering plants are allowed to set seed before grazing animals get access to the ground to reduce the annual plant growth. Along with only limited grazing in the winter and spring, this has led to an increase in the quantity and variety of plants. Another part of the project has
created and installed several coastal footpaths, such as the one on the east coast of South Ronaldsay. These will help people to gain better access to these wonderful coastal areas. The project also produced a variety of information and advice on the special qualities of Orkney’s maritime grassland and heaths. And some pioneering work was carried out to test out various ways of restoring heaths that have been damaged. The £1.26 million project was
funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund with additional support from Orkney Islands Council, SNH, RSPB, Scottish Wildlife Trust and Orkney Enterprise.
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The Nature of Scotland
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