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Scotland's Native Trees and Shrubs
Safeguarding Scotland's fragile ecology
Long-tailed tits are full of ingenuity and engineering skill, making wise use of resources to build their superb dome-shaped nests provided by the humble hawthorn - moss, lichens, leaves and spiders' webs.
In common with many developed parts of the world, the unique characteristics of Scotland's ecology are in fragile balance. Habitats and species are under threat due to pressure from development, climate change, increasing accessibility, overgrazing and, in some areas, the spread of invasive alien species. The Scottish Executive Development Department appreciates that it can make an important practical contribution to protecting Scotland's fragile ecology. Road verges are rapidly becoming important 'nature reserves'. Many of Scotland's trunk road verges have developed into species-rich grassland. Other areas of the trunk road soft estate, further from the roadway, are being allowed to develop naturally into woodland, scrub and wetland. Where the design objectives are to create formal or ornamental landscape, natural processes may not always be possible, or indeed desirable. Together, these areas provide an increasingly valuable wildlife reserve in an ecologically hostile world. The management of these verges and often quite extensive areas of adjacent land, that become part of the trunk road soft estate, must seek to conserve and enhance this valuable heritage. The design of new roads and new landscape provides the opportunity to enhance and extend our wildlife network to reduce habitat fragmentation in the wider landscape context and recreate the days when roads, fields and woodland were inter-connected by hedges.
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