Many people would agree that conserving our wildlife is important for its own sake, but we often do not realise the essential services it provides for our quality of life. For instance, our biodiversity provides services like clean air, clean water and food.It is now recognized that it is not just the number of species we have, but how they interact together in ecosystems that it is important. For example conserving a species of pine tree in a garden may save the species, but will not provide the flood alleviation ‘service’ that these trees thriving on a mountainside might. Or species conserved just in a zoo will no longer be part of the ecosystems they were once part of contributing as a whole to a healthy functioning planet.
Do we need to worry about our biodiversity?
Yes! Species are being lost and habitats degraded, and our climate is changing. Whilst species extinction is a natural part of Earth's history, over the past 100 years, humans have increased the extinction rate by at least 100 times compared to the natural rate. The current extinction rate is much greater than the rate at which new species arise, resulting in a net loss of biodiversity.
So
me species of our higher mountains may be lost. This could include birds like the snow bunting, which occur on our Nevis Estate. According to a report from the RSPB and Durham University, the average range of British birds will move 550 kilometres (340 miles) to the north by 2100 as the climate heats up.
On our Nevis estate, a site condition monitoring report from SNH showed that the Arctic-alpine plants were declining. The report concluded that ‘the most likely long term threat is climate change, particularly as this has an effect on the distribution and duration of areas of late lying snow. Some of our rarer species will be outcompeted as the temperature warms.
Other mountain specialists like the Mountain Ringlet butterfly, found on Ben Nevis and Schiehallion are facing the same threats from changing climate.
You might also find this 2004 report by SNH interesting: Climate Change Impacts on Habitat and Species.
What is the John Muir Trust doing?
Through biodiversity management and monitoring we aim in the short term to:
• Maintain any features of protected areas that we manage in favourable condition
• Reduce the damaging impacts (grazing and trampling) on vegetation of browsing animals
• Observe and record responses in vegetation condition as a result of changes in management
Our longer term aims (beyond the next five years) are to:
• Encourage more natural processes,
• Improve the condition of habitats, species diversity and natural altitudinal gradients, from sea or glen to summit (e.g. natural tree lines),
• Expand and improve the quality of native woodlands,
• Gather data to demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach to others
We hope that the land management strategy being pursued will lead to an improvement in the quality of habitats over time, despite any potential detrimental effects caused by climate change. "
What can you do for biodiversity?
Lots! One way to encourage biodiversity is to grow trees and plants which are native to your area and which will be the ones most likely to provide the best food and shelter for native animals rather than rushing off to buy anything labeled "butterfly home" or "food for native birds".
You can also get involved in recording the wildlife you see, to help keep a track of how things might be changing. For example the Woodland Trust Natures Calendar, or the British Trust for Ornithology's Garden Bird Survey .
Many communities are already taking steps that make a difference from growing food more locally in Knoydart to growing trees on Eigg, North Harris and on Skye.
It would be great to hear about anything you are doing to support biodiversity.
Yes! Species are being lost and habitats degraded, and our climate is changing. Whilst species extinction is a natural part of Earth's history, over the past 100 years, humans have increased the extinction rate by at least 100 times compared to the natural rate. The current extinction rate is much greater than the rate at which new species arise, resulting in a net loss of biodiversity.
So
me species of our higher mountains may be lost. This could include birds like the snow bunting, which occur on our Nevis Estate. According to a report from the RSPB and Durham University, the average range of British birds will move 550 kilometres (340 miles) to the north by 2100 as the climate heats up.On our Nevis estate, a site condition monitoring report from SNH showed that the Arctic-alpine plants were declining. The report concluded that ‘the most likely long term threat is climate change, particularly as this has an effect on the distribution and duration of areas of late lying snow. Some of our rarer species will be outcompeted as the temperature warms.
Other mountain specialists like the Mountain Ringlet butterfly, found on Ben Nevis and Schiehallion are facing the same threats from changing climate.
You might also find this 2004 report by SNH interesting: Climate Change Impacts on Habitat and Species.
What is the John Muir Trust doing?
Through biodiversity management and monitoring we aim in the short term to:
• Maintain any features of protected areas that we manage in favourable condition
• Reduce the damaging impacts (grazing and trampling) on vegetation of browsing animals
• Observe and record responses in vegetation condition as a result of changes in management
Our longer term aims (beyond the next five years) are to:
• Encourage more natural processes,
• Improve the condition of habitats, species diversity and natural altitudinal gradients, from sea or glen to summit (e.g. natural tree lines),
• Expand and improve the quality of native woodlands,
• Gather data to demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach to others
We hope that the land management strategy being pursued will lead to an improvement in the quality of habitats over time, despite any potential detrimental effects caused by climate change. "
What can you do for biodiversity?
Lots! One way to encourage biodiversity is to grow trees and plants which are native to your area and which will be the ones most likely to provide the best food and shelter for native animals rather than rushing off to buy anything labeled "butterfly home" or "food for native birds".
You can also get involved in recording the wildlife you see, to help keep a track of how things might be changing. For example the Woodland Trust Natures Calendar, or the British Trust for Ornithology's Garden Bird Survey .
Many communities are already taking steps that make a difference from growing food more locally in Knoydart to growing trees on Eigg, North Harris and on Skye.
It would be great to hear about anything you are doing to support biodiversity.
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