The Nature of Scotland

SNH Area News
Forth and Borders
Correspondents: Neville Makan, Heather Kinnin, Andrew Panter
Caring developers
Great crested newts are a highly
protected species and are known
to favour the landscapes of central
Scotland as a place to live. They can
therefore frustrate some developers in
this busy part of the country.
I&H Brown are a company that
specialise in reclaiming brownfield land.
So you might have expected them to
be a bit vexed when they discovered a
population of these special creatures
using part of a site earmarked for
regeneration near the community
of Banknock, Falkirk. However, they
instead grasped the challenge with
both hands – literally!
They installed over 1.5 kilometres
of fencing to manage newt movements
during construction; designed the
landscape plan to consider future newt
travels and habitat needs; set aside over
10% of the area as a wildlife reserve;
and involved local school children in
creating suitable homes for newts.
They even allowed their development
manager, Tommy Devlin, to be trained
and licensed to handle and relocate
trapped newts within the site.
Tommy (pictured) is delighted to
get ‘hands on’ with the great crested
newts, despite a certain amount
of ribbing from colleagues. He
regularly checks the traps for newts,
demonstrating that not all developers
are afraid to show they care about our
exceptional wildlife.
Gigantic scorpion
Evidence of a giant six-legged water
scorpion has been found on the Fife
coast. There’s no need for alarm,
however, as it’s not been there for
some 330 million years – before the
dinosaurs. Known as Hibbertopterus,
this ancient animal would have been
about two metres long and about
a metre broad, and was related to
modern-day scorpions and horseshoe
crabs.
We know it was there because it
left behind a unique fossil trackway
(shown above) as it crawled over damp
sand. The trackway, which is preserved
in sandstone, consists of three rows
of crescent shaped footprints on each
side of a central groove. The groove
was made by the tail of the animal as it
dragged itself over the sand.
This find is unique and internationally
important because the creature was
gigantic. Sadly, the coastal site where
the fossil was found is vulnerable to
the forces of nature. To preserve this
important evidence, Geoheritage
Fife (with funding from SNH and the
Geologists’ Association) have paid for
the trackway to be moulded in silicone
rubber. It’s hoped that replicas made
from the moulding can be displayed in
museums and universities.
Restoring the land
A recent conference in Peebles
brought together land managers,
environmentalists, academics and
others to consider how to put restoring
the environment at the heart of the
Scottish Government’s emerging land
use strategy.
James Aronson from the Centre for
Functional and Evolutionary Ecology in
France gave the opening presentation,
describing his experience of projects
in other countries and the factors
that decide whether or not they are
successful. Other speakers covered the
scope for restoring areas for wildlife in
Scotland – upland, woodlands, bogs,
rivers and flood plains, as well as farm
land – and highlighted examples of
good practice.
By the end, there was broad
agreement that we need to do more
to promote restoring natural areas in
Scotland. This will correct the damage
caused by past human activity and also
help to meet the future challenges and
opportunities presented by climate
change.
Willie McGhee, director of the
Borders Forest Trust, summed up the
day: “We must ensure that restoring
the environment is at the forefront of
any policy decisions. Getting it right is
critical for both the land itself and for
the people who work and live on it.”
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