It has been an incredibly busy few months for the Forth Reserves team (so busy in fact they haven’t had a chance to tell anyone what they have been up to), here’s a quick round up of everything that has been going on.
Skinflats:
We were lucky enough to receive funding from NatureScot’s Nature Recovery Fund to carry out work on the islands within the managed realignment at Skinflats, the aim of the work was to create valuable shingle habitat to species such as oystercatchers, ringed plovers and maybe even avocets.
The original plan was for a contractor to move the shingle but they were unable to do so which meant it all had to be moved by hand. So, staff and volunteers spent a very muddy week in March installing 25m of floating pontoon to give access to the islands (two of them anyway, the third was accessed by boat) and moving 40 tonnes of shingle with the help some mini dumpers and a lot of cake!
Oystercatchers have already been seen investigating the islands so hopes are high that they will be well used.
This work was carried out as part of the Inner Forth Climate Resilience project funded by NatureScot’s Nature Recovery Fund. As part of the same project, three tern rafts will also be deployed at Skinflats, further increasing the habitat available to breeding birds. These have been well received on sites nearby so, again we’re hopeful they will be used this spring.
Black Devon Wetlands:
Over the last few months, staff and volunteers have spent time repairing and upgrading the existing boardwalk at Black Devon Wetlands.
First installed in 2016, the boardwalk allows access to the viewing screen on site but sadly had begun to fail in places which meant that it was becoming unsafe to use. Unfortunately it was not possible to simply swap out the broken sections so all 125m had to be replaced.
Staff and volunteers have worked hard in very wet and boggy conditions to remove the old boards (much more work than was anticipated), repair and upgrade the support structure (again, more work that first thought) and then replace the treads with new, hardwearing boards.
All of this should mean the boardwalk is fit for purpose for years to come, allowing visitors to the site the opportunity to view the fantastic wildlife of the Inner Forth.
This work was only possible due to funding from Inner Forth Landscape Initiative Management & Maintenance Fund (legacy of the National Lottery funded IFLI programme), Clackmannanshire & Stirling Environment Trust and Scotrail.
Forth islands:
Each year for the last ten years, tree mallow has been cut on Fidra to help breeding seabird species like puffins and fulmars but this year, the Forth Reserves team were lucky enough to receive funding to not only continue this work on Fidra but also to carry out work to clear tree mallow on Inchmickery.
Funding was secured from the Scottish Marine Environmental Enhancement Fund (SMEEF) to employ rope access contractors to clear the tree mallow from the cliffs and steep ground on Fidra that is not accessible for staff and volunteers (this is vital to reduce the amount of seed which might be reintroduced to the island) and also for several trips to Inchmickery with volunteers to clear tree mallow which has become established over the past few years and was beginning to spread across the island. In additional, areas of elder were also cleared on Inchmickery to increase habitat available for breeding seabirds like eiders and lesser black backed gulls.
Considering it hasn’t been the easiest of years to work on the islands (Avian fly has massively restricted work that can be done and limited how many times we have been able to get out the islands), we are really pleased to be able to say that we have cleared both islands of all accessible tree mallow again this year, meaning that the islands are in the best possible shape for the breeding birds who will be arriving any day now.
Fannyside:
While not as exciting as some of the other work that has been going on but just as important, the new management plan for the site has been completed. The plan is ambitious but realistic for the small team that manages the reserve and we can’t wait to get started on some of the more exciting projects in there.
All in all, it has been a busy time for the reserve team but it is great to be able to look back at what we have achieved before we start to prepare for the busy time that is the breeding season.