Hello. I’m Naomi, the Visitor Operations Volunteer here at Forsinard Flows. A previous foray into Caithness gave me a glimpse into the intriguing habitats of the Flow Country and a sample of its incredible expanse, this captured my imagination and I leapt at the chance to return this summer. For the next 3 months I’ll be helping Marina in and around the visitor centre and on guided walks.
For the past 4 years, I’ve been working on a different type of wetland restoration, studying plant and insect communities in grazing marsh and fen habitats for my PhD research. With this background in ecology and conservation science, I find the ongoing research and large-scale restoration work at Forsinard Flows fascinating. But just as important as doing the work is telling people about it.
As a botanist by training, and having a soft-spot for mosses in particular, I hope to share some of my knowledge and interest in the plants here with visitors; as well as discussing the importance of this special ecosystem and the RSPB’s conservation work. As for the birds, being surrounded by experts is a good chance for me to get to grips with our feathered wildlife, I expect visitors will teach me a fair bit too!