LANARK AREA MEMBER CENTRE BULLETIN ISSUE 51: October 2012

WELCOME

Welcome to the October issue of the Lanark Area MC’s bulletin 2012, which contains articles of general and local interest, updates on talks, events, etc. I hope you will all contribute news and events to future bulletin editions. Send any articles, photos and ideas to postmaster@lanarkswt.org.uk. WHAT’S ON THIS MONTH? October Talk Tuesday 30th October An expedition to the island and beyond; The Clipperton Project. Speaker: Katherine Dunlop, Marine Biologist, University of Glasgow and Science Coordinator, The Clipperton Project. October Walk Saturday 27th October A guided walk of the Clyde Valley Woodlands from Cartland Crags to Cleghorn. Walk lead by Martin Twiss, Scottish Natural Heritage, National Nature Reserve and Woodland Projects Officer Meet at 11am at Lanark Bus Station Cost: £3 or £4 non members Booking essential PLEASE EITHER EMAIL POSTMASTER@LANARKSWT.ORG.UK OR RING JOSANNE ON 01555 893804. November Walk Sunday 4th November Lichens walk at the Cadzow Oaks High Parks SSSI, Hamilton. Led by lichenologist John Douglass Cost: Free Meet at 10 am to 12.30 pm, Cadzow woods, near Chatelherault Country Park, Hamilton. Booking essential PLEASE EITHER EMAIL POSTMASTER@LANARKSWT.ORG.UK OR RING JOSANNE ON 01555 893804.

Local News Falls of Clyde Reserve Paths Water Damaged A few weeks ago high levels of water overflowed from the surrounding farmland into the Falls of Clyde. This was channeled down one of the paths near the beginning of the reserve. SWT rangers have managed to temporarily repair the section just before the start of the boardwalk which has suffered quite regularly this year from erosion due to heavy rainfall and surface run-off. However you will notice that the path that rises steeply up towards the vehicle track is still yet to be repaired. The path is still open and the rangers ask you to take care when walking along this route. Laura’s Blog Laura the Falls of Clyde Ranger has blogged that there have been over a dozen sightings of the resident kingfishers over the past couple of weeks. These dumpy bodied, long beaked birds are unmistakeable due to their electric blue markings on the side of their body. They need to catch 60% of their body weight each day to survive which is no mean feat. Kingfishers are very territorial and it is unusual to see more than one at once so we have been extremely lucky to see two on a few occasions recently. You can read more of Laura’s blog at http://blogs.scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/fallsofclyde/. Important Note from Jason Newton, Chairman, Lanark Area MC Proposal to unman the Falls of Clyde Visitor’s Centre Those of you who attended this September’s meeting will be aware that the SWT are consulting on the possibility of making the Falls of Clyde Visitor Centre (VC) an unmanned centre. However, there is also a proposal to engage a new (half) post developing links with the reserve. Jo Pike the SWT’s Director of Marketing and Business Development outlined the proposed change to the way the Falls of Clyde VC operates and several members questioned the proposals. Also present were members of the Hawks and the Clyde, Clarkston & East Kilbride, Ayrshire and Glasgow Member Centres. The Falls of Clyde Visitor Centre has been an essential and popular component of the SWT community in Lanarkshire for many years and its unmanning will mean that there are no manned VCs in the whole of the Central Belt, nor one accessible from southern Scotland. Unmanning the VC, which is within one-hour drive of 70% of the national population, is a major step and will undoubtedly have negative consequences for the engagement with the public. We hope to work with Jo and colleagues to arrive at an appropriate solution. The MC committee has been asked to respond to the proposal and we will post the decision on the future of the MC once the SWT Council has met.

Other news Only 800 pairs of Corn buntings left in Scotland Research over twenty years has highlighted the need for urgent action to transform the fortunes of one of Scotland's fastest declining farmland birds. Once widespread across Britain, the corn bunting is now rare in Scotland with only 800 breeding pairs, confined to parts of the eastern lowlands and the Western Isles. Over a 20 year period, an Aberdeenshire population of Corn buntings declined by 91% from 134 pairs to just 12. The recently published study by RSPB Scotland and Dr Adam Watson found that gradual changes in crop management, particularly an increase in field size and decrease in weed abundance, reduced the availability of safe nesting sites and food sources the species depends on. As cereal crops have become less weedy, more corn buntings may now be nesting in grass silage fields where they are especially vulnerable to harvesting operations. Researchers also determined the increase in field size reduced the availability of insect-rich field edge habitats and elevated song posts, such as fences, that males use when establishing and defending territories. A study published last year, demonstrated that agricultural grant schemes, when targeted effectively, had a positive impact on corn buntings.

Corn bunting RSPB/Cliff Reddick

Pilot whales mass strand in Scotland On Sunday 2nd September the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) received a call from the Forth Coastguard about a mass stranding of whales at Pittenweem, Fife, at the base of steep cliffs. Once on site, the BDMLR confirmed that 26 pilot whales had stranded and tragically 13 were already dead. The live animals were given first aid by the volunteers and teams of volunteer medics from the charity were mobilised, with specialist rescue pontoons being moved to the location from across Scotland, Newcastle and Cumbria. Over 30 BDMLR medics attended the scene and were assisted by an additional 25 from other emergency service organisations including the Coastguard, Fire and Rescue, Police and SSPCA. Out of the thirteen whales that were still alive, three sadly died. However the remaining ten were refloated. All ten whales have now been reported as having left the harbour. We would like to thank Gordon Lang for the picture below. Gordon tells us that he joined the BDLMR following Joanna Hedley’s talk at the Member Centre nearly three years ago. He says, “The difficulty with pilot whales is that their social bonds are so strong that if one sick individual comes ashore, the remaining healthy ones will do likewise. Consequently, it doesn't take much for a situation to escalate into something that's unmanageable. The primary objective is to keep all the healthy animals alive and refloat them at the first opportunity (the next high tide), but if this isn't done simultaneously there is a high risk of them restranding to join those still on the beach.” “On this occasion, there was no shortage of manpower, and it ended up being a major multi-agency exercise (BDMLR, Coastguard, RNLI, Police, Fire, REACT, SSPCA). Although BDMLR had the special flotation pontoons (transported from various locations in the country), it still required a huge human effort to make things happen and the other agencies couldn't have been more supportive.”

The stranding at Pittenweem.

Tuna sighted west of Lewis On a recent day trip to St Kilda, a motor cruiser Lochlann, sighted an unusually large and concentrated flock of diving gannets. On investigation, the crew were amazed to see the characteristic upright, thin forked tails of tuna darting through the water. This rare sighting of tuna so far north of their normal habitat was a memorable experience and an uncomfortable indicator of our warming seas. Scottish beaver trial update The latest report on beaver ecology as part of the Scottish Beaver Trial has been published by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH). A group of European beavers was reintroduced to Knapdale forest near Lochgilphead in 2009, as part of the Scottish Beaver Trial, at a cost of some £2 million. The Scottish Beaver Trial is a partnership between the Scottish Wildlife Trust, the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) and host partners, Forestry Commission Scotland. Since 2009 SNH has been closely monitoring the beavers, and their effects on the environment, in partnership with a number of other independent organisations. The results of this monitoring will help inform the Scottish Government's decisions about the future of beavers in Scotland, following the trial, including whether they should be permanently reintroduced. The report summarises the results of monitoring work carried out on the beavers themselves over the first two years of the trial, from their release in May 2009 until June 2011. It also reports on the use of the site by otters. The work was carried out by the Wildlife Conservation Unit at the University of Oxford (WildCRU) in partnership with SNH staff, largely based on observations collected by Scottish Beaver Trial field staff. A total of fifteen beavers in five families or pairs were released during the first year of the trial, and one further animal during the second year of the trial. Three deaths, all males, were recorded during the first year. A further three animals were also classified as ‘missing' (fate unknown) by the end of the first year. No further deaths were recorded during the second year of the trial but one further animal was recorded as missing. Two of the missing animals were sub-adults. As of June 2011, of the 16 animals released over 2009 and 2010, nine were believed to be alive and present in the release area. Two wild-born yearling animals, born in 2010, were also present. During the second year of the project, preliminary trials investigating the potential use of inexpensive GPS transmitters indicated that GPS tracking would be a useful monitoring tool. At the end of the second year of the trial there were sufficient data to show that four beaver families or pairs had successfully established territories (one family in the early stages of the project had failed to establish), and that the two families established by the end of the first year had successfully reproduced. Evidence including gnawed or felled trees, tracks, beaver dams or lodges, gave a good overview of the areas used by beavers and their activities on land. Future monitoring is to be carried out to include measures to identify where individual beavers are living and how much time the beavers spend in the water compared with on land.

At the end of the five year trial the results of the monitoring work will give the Scottish Government the information they need to decide whether beavers should be permanently reintroduced to Scotland. Scottish fish farmers use record amounts of parasite pesticides Scottish fish farmers have used record amounts of highly toxic pesticides to combat underwater parasites that prey on salmon, raising fears of significant damage to the marine environment. Data released by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency shows a 110% increase in the use of chemicals to treat sea lice in the past four years, mainly because the parasite is becoming resistant to treatment. During that same period, however, salmon production has increased only by 22%, to 158,000 tonnes. The agency said it was not carrying out any studies into the impact of the chemicals on the marine environment, but added that there was no evidence of any cumulative damage from increasing use of pesticides. Ecologists and campaigners argue there is compelling evidence that some fish farms are failing to use chemicals safely. The chemicals used are highly toxic to many marine species, especially crustaceans. The treatments use organophosphates, which attack the nervous system of sea lice and teflubenzuron, which interferes with their ability to grow shells. Marine scientists have shown the chemical is extremely threatening to young lobsters, crabs and prawns. The salmon industry is expected to keep use of the toxins under strict control but has seen significant problems in Norway with the emergence of "superlice" resistant to normal treatments. The Scottish government and salmon industry plan to increase output by 50% by 2020, suggesting that there will be even greater use of toxic treatments against sea lice in future.

Sea lice on salmon/Scottish Government

Scottish deep sea 'zombie worms' whale study suggested Scientists are planning to conduct what would be the first study in UK deep waters of creatures known as "zombie worms" that eat bones of dead whales. The research would involve sinking a whale carcass, potentially at a location off the coast of Scotland. Similar work has been done in Sweden, Japan and off California in the US. The worms from the Osedax genus were only discovered in 2004, and new discoveries of the creatures are still being made. Scientists are also trying to better understand how the worms locate whale corpses. The worms do not have a mouth or gut and use root-like tissue to bore into and eat bones. Large marine mammals that die and sink to sea floors in deep water become a food source for various forms of wildlife, and these “whale-falls” can provide sustenance for marine organisms for many years. Studies of what happens to dead whales, dolphins and porpoises have been done in the UK, but only in shallow water where the worms have not yet been found. Dr Nick Higgs, a researcher in the deep sea who works from London, and Oban-based marine chronobiology investigator Dr Kim Last, have hopes of carrying out the UK's first deep water investigation. It would involve sinking a whale that has died in a stranding. Dr Higgs said it was possible this could be done off Scotland, and with cameras to monitor what happens to the animal. Deliberately sinking a dead whale is done for scientific studies because it is so rare to find the carcasses at sea. He said: "We have a good idea of how to do it. It's pretty straightforward really. Sinking stranded whales could be an alternative to cutting them up and incinerating the animals. Scottish local authorities have spent between £10,000 and £50,000 dealing with dead sperm and pilot whales in this way. From what I can gather, sinking would be in order of £10,000 to £15,000. I am not saying we should sink every whale that washes up on UK shores, but in some cases it could be cheaper than a disposal costing £50,000 and would also help science."

Osedax worms, MBARI

Autumn/Spring Programme 2012-2013

All talks start at 7:30pm & are held in St Nicholas Parish Church Back Hall at Castlegate, Lanark Tuesday 30th October An expedition to the island and beyond; The Clipperton Project. Speaker: Katherine Dunlop, Marine Biologist, University of Glasgow and Science Coordinator, The Clipperton Project. Tuesday 27th November A short AGM followed by a talk The Natural History Collection at the Glasgow Resource Centre Speaker: Richard Sutcliffe, Research Manager (Natural Sciences). Tuesday 18th December Members Night Mulled wine, mince pies & member’s talks Tuesday 29th January 'What it's like to be a bird?'. Speaker: Prof. Tim Birkhead FRS Tuesday 26th February The Clyde Valley Orchard Project Speakers: Janice Clelland & Anne Armstrong, Clyde Valley Orchard Group Tuesday 26th March Feral Goats Speaker: Tracy Vicker, British Feral Goats Research Group Tuesday 30th April Cathkin Marsh, SWT Reserve Speaker: Katrina Martin, Cathkin Marsh Project Officer

FIELD TRIPS Saturday 27th October A guided walk of the Clyde Valley Woodlands from Cartland Crags to Cleghorn. Walk lead by Martin Twiss, Scottish Natural Heritage, National Nature Reserve and Woodland Projects Officer Meet at 11am at Lanark Bus Station Cost: £3 or £4 non members Booking essential

Sunday 4th November Lichens walk at the Cadzow Oaks High Parks SSSI, Hamilton. Led by lichenologist John Douglass Cost: Free Meet at 10 am to 12.30 pm, Cadzow woods, near Chatelherault Country Park, Hamilton. Booking essential Saturday 1st December Guided tour of the natural history collection of the Glasgow Museums Resource Centre Meet at 9.30am at Lanark Bus Station Cost: £6 or £7 non members Booking essential Saturday 27th April Dawn chorus/Breakfast with the birds at SWT Falls of Clyde Reserve, New Lanark Meet at 8am outside the Visitor Centre SWT Falls of Clyde Reserve, New Lanark Cost: £3 Bring your own breakfast. Saturday 11th May Cathkin Marsh Wildlife Reserve A guided walk around the reserve (about 1.5km and will take about 1.5 hours) Meet at 9am at Lanark Bus Station Cost: £5 or £6 non members Booking essential June – Isle TBA

TO BOOK A PLACE ON ANY TRIP PLEASE EITHER EMAIL POSTMASTER@LANARKSWT.ORG.UK OR

RING JOSANNE ON 01555 893804.