The State of Nature

Earlier this month Scotland received a wake-up call in the form of the State of Nature report, which confirmed that our nation’s wildlife continues to decline. The annual scientific report is published by more than 70 wildlife organisations, including the Scottish Wildlife Trust, a Cumbernauld Living Landscape partner organisation. This year’s report was the most detailed to date and full of alarming figures, including the fact that one in nine Scottish species is now threatened with extinction. That kind of loss to our natural world is almost unimaginable, but it’s happening right now.

That kind of loss to our natural world is almost unimaginable, but it’s happening right now.

Cumbernauld is an incredibly green town, so it’s no surprise that many of the reported threats to Scotland’s nature are relevant to us. For example, the way woodlands are managed is having an impact on the wildlife that lives there and the densely packed, non-native conifers common around Cumbernauld aren’t always the best kind of green.

Invasive plant species are also a problem. Species such as dogwood and Himalayan balsam are highly competitive and can take over our greenspaces, leaving little room for the variety of native plants our birds, insects and mammals rely on.

It’s difficult not to read the State of Nature and feel despair, but the report did contain some hope. People do care, and amount of time they are donating to protecting their local greenspaces is on the rise.

At Cumbernauld Living Landscape we’re working with the community to be part of the solution. For example, our woodland projects will see many of the town’s greenspaces rejuvenated as non-native trees are removed and thousands of native tree species are planted in their place. And when it comes to invasives, our Nature Ninja volunteers are on the case! If you would like to join us, get in touch.