The Nature of Scotland – Autumn 2011 – Issue 13

SNH Area News
Forth
Correspondents: Katherine Leys, Tim Jacobs, Karen Morrison
Celebrating rise in crime!
Anti-alien alliance
Blooming at Craigie
Rising crime figures are not usually
a cause for satisfaction. But in Fife,
the local Partnership against Wildlife
Crime (Fife PAW) is celebrating a rise
in reported incidents of 700%! This
unusual situation is a result of the work
done by the Fife PAW since it started
up in 2010.
The rising figures don’t necessarily
mean that wildlife related crime in
Fife has increased. Instead, it’s likely
that crime which previously went
undetected is now being reported.
This reflects greater awareness of, and
confidence in, those tackling wildlife
offences in the area.
An effective partnership has
developed including Fife Police,
National Farmers Union, RSPB
Scotland and SNH. Fife Police have
appointed a dedicated wildlife crime
officer, Ian Laing. His role has been
crucial in getting the organisations
working together, at both a strategic
and an operational level, and in
achieving the higher rate of reported
incidents.
Police investigations have revealed
that those involved in wildlife crime
often have links to serious and
organised crime. Having a single initial
point of contact will help to identify
links between different wildlife related
incidents across Fife and target future
action by the group.
A leisurely walk along your local river
bank during the summer may well
have brought you close to some alien
invaders. Non-native plants such as
Himalayan balsam, giant hogweed
and Japanese knotweed pose a real
threat to biodiversity. If left unchecked,
they can overwhelm and choke out the
native plants that naturally belong on
our riverbanks. This is a widespread
problem, but it’s particularly important
that we tackle it on the land we
manage.
At Loch Lomond National Nature
Reserve we’ve fought these problem
plants with the help of volunteers
and members of the local community.
Despite the challenging ground on the
reserve, and our wish to keep the use
of herbicides to an absolute minimum,
they’ve had a lot of success. Their hard
work has helped boost the natural
biodiversity of the reserve’s important
wetlands.
We can’t rest on our laurels though.
We will never be truly free from
problem plants on the reserve until their
growth upstream in the catchment is
tackled as well, because seeds travel
down the river to the reserve. So our
next challenge is to bring other land
managers in the catchment on board
and persuade them that they can make
a difference too.
Despite the worst winter in 40 years,
a group of women carrying out
community sentences successfully
created a wildlife garden on the
outskirts of Edinburgh. The women –
with advice from a gardening consultant
– designed, built and planted the
garden themselves. SNH funded the
project, West Craigie Local Food
Project (see www.craigies.co.uk) ran
it and Craigie’s Fruit Farm donated the
land and a polytunnel.
The garden includes raised beds
for growing fruit and vegetables, which
are then sold in the farm shop and café.
Biodiversity features include an insect
‘hotel’, with a large range of nesting
opportunities, as well as bird feeding
areas and a hedgehog home.
The project not only helped wildlife
but was also an opportunity for the
women offenders to see themselves
as gardeners and creative people.
It took them away from their usual
environment, to learn new skills and
experiences and to work together.
The feedback from the women included
comments such as, “It’s just great
to be outside. I love it here.” and
“My husband says he notices the
change in me the days that I come.
I’m much calmer.”
The women’s experience was
captured on a DVD that can be viewed
on the SNH website at www.snh.gov.
uk/about-snh/snh-in-your-area/
forth/news-in-the-forth-area/
www.snh.gov.uk 43