FLS supporting the recovery of Britain’s rarest fern
On a stony slope in Glen Affric, hopes are high that one of Britain’s rarest ferns can regain a foothold and recover.
Staff from Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) have translocated and planted 250 oblong woodsia (Woodsia ilvensis) on a hillside in the glen.
The small mountain fern was virtually wiped out by commercial collectors responding to the Victorian craze for ferns – pteridomania – that began in the late 1840s and continues to be threatened by habitat fragmentation and climate change.
The collaboration is supporting the RBGE’s work on its Scottish Plant Recovery Project – a science-led recovery initiative that aims to increase the numbers and distribution of 10 threatened native plants including the oblong woodsia.
Glen Affric has already been selected as a suitable location for several of the other identified species including a population of potentially resistant wych elm (Ulmus glabra) around the old Ent of Affric and wild apple (Malus sylvestris).
FLS Forester Sam Brown said:
“Over the last two years we have been working closely with the RBGE on its Scottish Plant Recovery Project to help kick-start the recovery of some of Scotland’s native tree and plant species.
“Oblong woodsia is the third species we have planted in Glen Affric so far. FLS worked with the project team from the RBGE to plant the alpine ferns high on one of the glen’s scree slopes at around 650 metres, making for an interesting day’s planting.
“We will be monitoring this new population in conjunction with RBGE. It would be fantastic to see them establishing and self-regenerating and once more growing across Scotland after being on the brink of extinction.”
To restore oblong woodsia numbers in Scotland, the RBGE propagated and bulked up thousands of ferns in the botanical garden’s nursery, before planting into a variety of carefully chosen sites across the country.
RBGE Scottish Native Plant Conservation Horticulturist Erin O’Hare said:
“This fern is so fragile in nature that finding the right place to try and plant them is very challenging. We landed on nine sites that were selected for their scree habitat with low competition but also with considerable variation in humidity, altitude, aspect, and base rock.
“As is the case with many endangered rare plants, their preferred growing conditions are still debated and undergoing research. There is no certainty around the ideal conditions for Woodsia ilvensis so our plantings also act as trial work for the Woodsia’s environmental requirements.
“We will return to the sites, including Glen Affric, next year, to monitor these ferns and even though its early on in their establishment, we will be able to get an indication of what conditions are most successful.”
Background:
Restoring a fern wiped out by collectors and botanists – Botanics Stories
Resurrecting the Fern; Looking Back At Our Woodsia Translocations – Botanics Stories
Notes to Editors
- Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) manages forests and land owned by Scottish Ministers in a way that supports and enables economically sustainable forestry; conserves and enhances the environment; delivers benefits for people and nature; and supports Scottish Ministers in their stewardship of Scotland's national forests and land.
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