Introduction to: Wet Woods Restoration Project - Final Technical Report
Compiled by Scottish Natural Heritage on behalf of Scottish Natural Heritage
Forest Enterprise, Forestry Commission, The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and Highland Birchwoods: September 2002

1.1 Background to the Project.

Wet Woods’ is the collective name for two priority habitats as defined in Annex 1 of the Habitats and Species Directives:

Bog Woodland
Residual Alluvial Forest

Bog woodland is an extremely rare habitat type in the UK and 7 [the number at the time of submission of the bid was 5] Scottish sites have been submitted to Europe as candidate Special Areas of Conservation (cSAC) [cSAC is a UK term that equates to proposed Site of Community Importance pSCI] under Council Directive 92/43/EEC. They occur under rare combinations of physical circumstances and typically have scattered trees across the surface of the bog, forming open woodland in a relatively stable ecological relationship, without the loss of bog species. In Scotland, bog woodlands normally form part of the mosaic of natural forest types within the wider Caledonian Pinewood habitat and are important for of a number of bird species listed on Annex I of the Birds Directive including Scottish crossbill, osprey, capercaillie and crested tit.

Residual alluvial forest is also a very rare habitat type in the UK and 10 Scottish sites [the number at the time of submission of the bid was 7] have been submitted to Europe as cSACs under Council Directive 92/43/EEC. Often dominated by Alnus glutinosa, residual alluvial forests are found on floodplains in a range of situations from islands in river channels to low-lying wetlands alongside these channels. Many alder woods are part of a dynamic system, being in some cases part of a successional series of habitats. In such cases, their structure and function are best maintained within a larger unit that includes the open communities of earlier successional stages. The habitat also supports otter (listed on Annex II of the Habitats Directive) and a wide range of Annex I (of the Birds Directive) bird species including kingfisher Alcedo atthis and osprey Pandion haliaetus.

Despite the cSAC sites being amongst the best examples of wet woods habitats in the UK, all have experienced some interference with the hydrological systems upon which they depend. Some bog woodland sites have been drained for agriculture, forestry and other land uses and similar changes to their immediate water catchment can influence the quantity and quality of water coming into the bog. The fertile sites of residual alluvial forests have also been cleared for arable farming and grazing or planted with commercial trees. In some cases, the presence of exotic shrubs has displaced the natural vegetation communities.

In May 1998, a partnership of Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), Forest Enterprise (FE), the Forestry Commission (FC), the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and Highland Birchwoods (HB) received funding from the European Union’s LIFE - Nature Programme to undertake a series of conservation initiatives on four wet woods cSACs in the UK.

1.2 Overview of the main conservation issues being addressed

The project aimed to provide restorative management to wet woods habitats in five of the cSACs listed for these habitats in the UK (Map 1.2.a) by working in partnership with conservation agencies, public sector forestry, private landowners, non-governmental organisations and research institutions. The general aim was to remove or mitigate existing threats to these rare habitat types.

1.3 Summary of the project’s objectives and expected results

* to restore significant areas of wet wood habitat on or adjacent to sites that are candidate Special Areas of Conservation to a more favourable condition;

* to undertake scientific research to inform restoration, management and monitoring plans for wet woods habitats;

* to disseminate the information gained throughout the project through the existing network of partner institutions by demonstration and promotion to encourage an integrated approach to the conservation of wet woods; and

* to support the ongoing work of developing partnerships between public agencies and private landowners.