The Nature of Scotland â Autumn 2011 â Issue 13
The Nature of Scotland â Autumn 2011 â Issue 13
The Nature of Scotland â Autumn 2011 â Issue 13
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4<br />
3<br />
Volunteers Sean<br />
Parker and Alan Reid<br />
(right) prepare to<br />
remove the new gull<br />
raft from Loch Leven<br />
for storage over winter.<br />
4<br />
Young Bioblitz<br />
volunteer Abby<br />
Morrison getting to<br />
grips with an insect<br />
survey.<br />
Dunes in June<br />
Volunteers in Ayrshire spent a couple <strong>of</strong> days at a ‘Bioblitz’<br />
event in June, where they surveyed a section <strong>of</strong> the coastline<br />
to find out about the birds, insects, plants and fungi living<br />
there.<br />
At events such as this, it’s always possible that a new<br />
species might be found. After all, scientists reckon that there<br />
are around 12 million species in the world and only about<br />
two million have been identified so far. It’s also possible to<br />
find species that are moving north, which may well be an<br />
indicator <strong>of</strong> climate change.<br />
<strong>The</strong> information gathered will be going into the Ayrshire<br />
local biodiversity action plan and will help guide future<br />
management <strong>of</strong> the area. “Despite the changeable weather,<br />
we had a fantastic couple <strong>of</strong> days out surveying in beautiful<br />
locations, with lots <strong>of</strong> wildlife all around,” commented Scott<br />
Shanks, chairman <strong>of</strong> the Glasgow and Southwest <strong>Scotland</strong><br />
branch <strong>of</strong> Butterfly Conservation.<br />
“One <strong>of</strong> the highlights <strong>of</strong> the weekend was the discovery<br />
<strong>of</strong> a rare sand dart moth in the dunes south <strong>of</strong> Turnberry.<br />
This is the first record for this species on the west coast <strong>of</strong><br />
<strong>Scotland</strong>. Indeed, the nearest known records are from the<br />
Isle <strong>of</strong> Man, over 100 km away!”<br />
If you’re interested in exploring the<br />
possibilities for a volunteer opportunity<br />
near you, the best place to start is your<br />
local volunteer centre. You can find out<br />
more at the Volunteer <strong>Scotland</strong> website<br />
www.volunteerscotland.org.uk<br />
Alternatively, if you're interested in<br />
a particular aspect <strong>of</strong> environmental<br />
volunteering, but can’t work out<br />
whom to contact, you could email<br />
volunteer@snh.gov.uk and we’ll<br />
see if we can point you in the right<br />
direction.<br />
www.snh.gov.uk 29