Our Airds Moss nature reserve in East Ayrshire extends to just under 1000ha of important bog and adjacent grassland and wetland habitats. It’s an important site for many species but a particular focus for us are our ground nesting waders, such as curlew and lapwing. Unfortunately, the populations on reserve have mirrored the wider national declines but we are working hard to reverse this.
To do this we are scaling up our management, having recently introduced highland cattle to the reserve to help get the vegetation back in top shape for our waders. We're carrying out more peatland restoration to ensure our bog is in the best condition it can be and removing linear features such as old fence lines that generalist predators use to move across the landscape. We've also instigated a rotational cutting programme to tackle some of the densest vegetation. However, one of the missing pieces of the puzzle was the presence of wetland features which provide crucial food sources for many of our breeding waders.
Highland cows at Airds Moss. Image credit: Tim Lill
We were therefore delighted to be awarded funding from the Scottish Government's Nature Restoration Fund (NRF), managed by NatureScot, for a wetland creation project at our Airds Moss nature reserve. Our aim is to create a wetland that can dynamically manage the water levels to maximise the habitat for our waders and allow for effective ongoing management. Filling in that piece of the jigsaw will move us closer to our ultimate goal of having a mosaic of high-quality wetland habitats across the site, grading from bog pools on the plateau to exemplary wet grassland systems on the moorland edge.
Part of the wetland area currently dominated by rank vegetation. Image credit: Tim Lill
During 2022 we have been busy planning and designing the wetland. This has involved being out on-site gathering ground level data and taking soil samples, as well as using high resolution aerial images to generate a map of current water flow, so that we can ensure the new wetland features are created in the optimal locations. Our aim with the design is that the wetland will redirect existing linear drainage ditches from adjacent farmland through a variety of newly created freshwater features including pools, scrapes and marshy habitats. This would ultimately build more capacity into the freshwater catchment before water is discharged into a small watercourse.
Additionally, the wetland will be designed to mitigate the impacts of climatic change on our waders. Recently, drier springs and summers are limiting available wet marginal habitats critical for feeding across farmland landscapes. Where pools or scrapes are solely fed by rainwater, high rates of evaporation and the lack of rain mean these features dry up by critical chick feeding periods. The proposed wetland design would seek to increase resilience to climate change and maintain wet conditions into these key periods by utilising existing freshwater inputs to feed the wetland features.
A curlew in flight at Airds Moss. Image credit: Christine Hall
With our designs now nearly complete we will be working towards getting licenses in place with the aim to start the ground works in autumn 2023.
This project is supported by the Scottish Government’s Nature Restoration Fund, managed by NatureScot.
Header image credit: Stephen Inglis
Further reading
Net Zero Scotland
Nature Restoration Fund