Questions:The hydrophilous tall herb community is an important refuge for grazing-sensitive broad-leaved flowering plants. It is distributed throughout upland Europe but overgrazing has contributed to an unfavourable conservation status. To guide tall herb restoration, we asked: (a) Does using grazing exclusion where the tall herb habitat is confined to cliff ledge patches promote an expansion into the grassland below? (b) Does this management negatively affect vascular plant diversity?Location: Ben Lawers NNR, Scotland.Methods: Large herbivores have been excluded from a 180-ha area containing patches of outcrops rich in tall herb habitat. Using 1999 and 2017 surveys of permanent plot transects located in the grassland below (Before-After design), we quantify impacts on community composition and tall herb abundance.Results: Species diversity remained constant although total species richness declined slightly and tall herb species richness increased significantly. There was a large expansion in tall herb cover (+29.67%) and a corresponding decrease in grass cover (−26.16%), as well as smaller increases in bryophytes and small herbs and a reduction in bare ground. Community composition shifted significantly from species typical of upland calcareous grassland towards those found in tall herb habitats. Seven tall herb species were amongst those showing the greatest increase in cover, along with taller grasses and understory herbs. Grazing tolerant grasses and low-growing, prostrate and annual herbs decreased. Competition for light, rather than resilience to herbivory, now has a major influence on the vegetation. Conclusions:Using grazing exclusion where the tall herb habitat is largely confined to patches on cliff ledges facilitates an expansion into the upland grassland below.Although this management favours species tolerant of shadier conditions, there is no evidence of a negative impact on vascular plant community composition. It is therefore an effective strategy for promoting the restoration and favourable condition of this grazing-sensitive habitat.

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The benefits of mountain woodland restorationRunning head: Benefits of mountain woodland restoration

Biological recording in Britain has increased in accessibility and popularity due to recent technological advances. However, remote locations may still be under-recorded, particularly for aquatic plants and taxonomically challenging groups. We describe a set of notable botanical discoveries made in 2021 at Corrour in the Scottish Highlands (v.c.97 Westerness), including Baldellia repens, Illecebrum verticillatum (new to Scotland) and six British altitudinal records. At the time of writing, there are now four Nationally Rare vascular plant taxa recorded on the estate and 29 Nationally Scarce taxa. These findings demonstrate the value of collaboration between land managers, ecologists, BSBI staff and the local community. Both B. repens and I. verticillatum are well established at Corrour in considerable abundance and with clear evidence of regeneration. B. repens also occurs in the Tay catchment and may have arrived at Corrour via vegetative dispersal by waterfowl. The origin of I. verticillatum is more ambiguous but suggested mechanisms of dispersal include forestry, the railway or hydroelectricity workings. Despite a likely element of accidental human-mediated spread, I. verticillatum should be considered an intriguing addition to the flora of Westerness. Climate change could facilitate further establishment of this taxa in northern parts of Britain, and it is likely that other new records of both B. repens and I. verticillatum await.

Capsule Chick age influenced female prey size and the provisioning rate of each parent while rainfall increased female brooding in a single sparrowhawk territory in Edinburgh. Aims To study the details of prey delivery, female brooding and the factors affecting chick mortality in a single sparrowhawk territory in Edinburgh. Methods Video footage collected from a sparrowhawk nest in the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in 2011 and 2012 was used to record the occurrence and size of prey deliveries by each parent and the time spent brooding by the female, with respect to the age of the chicks and daily rainfall measurements. The results were compared to observations made at three nests in Ae Forest (southwest Scotland) by Newton [1978. Feeding and development of sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus nestlings. J. Zool. 184: 465-487]. Results Once the chicks were four days old, the total number of prey deliveries per day did not change with age. However, there was a corresponding decrease and increase in provisioning rates by male and female parents, respectively, although the male contribution remained highest throughout. In the late stage of the nestling period, the higher food requirement of the chicks was matched by an increase in female prey size. The total rainfall per day had no effect on the rate of prey deliveries by either sex but did cause a rise in the time spent brooding by the females each day. A higher frequency of smaller prey deliveries and more extensive female brooding and prey partitioning occurred at both nests compared to those studied by Newton [1978. Feeding and development of sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus nestlings. J. Zool. 184: 465-487]. Conclusion The study nests were probably in a particularly high quality sparrowhawk territory and wetter weather may have been the primary reason for the reduced reproductive success in 2012.