Wildlife

Ian Malcolm is the club’s resident wildlife expert who has identified almost a 1,000 species in the club grounds. Photographs of some of the species can be seen are in folders in the clubhouse. 

If you would like to become involved in recording what’s on the site or would like more information on what’s there or if you’d simply like to identify something you’ve seen (preferably with a photograph!), please feel free to ask Ian.

Getting involved

The Club’s field is a remarkably wildlife-rich area. Much of it is fairly undisturbed and we make a reasonable effort to maintain the species diversity in those areas that we do actively manage: for example, we try to delay grass-cutting of the main area of the field until the wild flowers have set their seeds. It would be great if we could keep it like this, or even improve it, for those who come after us.

With the advent of digital cameras and the internet, especially sites like iSpot, it has become relatively easy for non-experts to get expert help to identify the species they see around them. Ian has taken advantage of this to begin to compile a list of all the species that we can find in – or above – the club’s land. So far Ian has identified, at least tentatively, almost 1000 species and he knows there are many more to come. Is there just one species of midge biting us? What about all the spiders scuttling about in the grass? And how many different species of bats are flying around at dusk and dawn?

Ian sends all the records to the local biological recording organisation, The Wildlife Information Centre, at Vogrie Country Park. From there it goes to various other recording organisations; some of it has already reached the latest release of the National Biodiversity Network Atlas. All of this will help to monitor the on-going biological health of both the Club’s site and the wider area as well as helping to map the distribution of species across the country.

You can view a gallery of wildlife observed at the Loch here.

Grey Mare’s Tail Nature Reserve

If you want to explore more wildlife then the Grey Mare’s Tail Nature Reserve is a paradise for wildlife enthusiasts who wish to observe the rich collection of some of southern Scotland’s most rare upland plants as well as peregrines, ring ouzels and feral goats. The reserve is a short drive or cycle from the clubhouse.

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