Issue 13

The influence of geology on Welsh vegetation

Just a glance at the colourful geological map of Wales shows how varied are the rocks beneath our feet. Only a few places across the world show the same geological variety within a comparatively small area. In this article RAYMOND ROBERTS considers the basic influence of geology on our country’s vegetation.

This article is written in Welsh. A translation is available on request.

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Cwm with a View

Over thirty years ago, a small patch of unique grassland was notified for its scientific interest. Soon to be declared a National Nature Reserve, it is part of a much larger Special Area of Conservation. JAMES ROBERTSON describes an oasis of wildlife on the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park, and how Cwm Cadlan came to be conserved – a story of conservation 'in progress'.

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Joining up the dots – conserving the marsh fritillary

All the fritillary butterflies have an appeal beyond mere beauty. They belong to a time of extensive natural landscapes, before nature became confined to small pockets of habitat. This is particularly true of the marsh fritillary – it needs to be conserved at a landscape scale. Here DEBORAH SAZER describes a project designed to do just this.

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The Lore of Plants: Dronwy Diaries

The diary of Robert Buckley, Dronwy (1631-35), Part 2: Living and Being. DUNCAN BROWN takes a look at the farming methods of the past, and the links between people and nature.

This article is written in Welsh. A translation is available on request.

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Montgomery Canal through the lens

Canals were created with no though for nature or leisure, but they provide both in this post-industrial age. Yet the idyll of languorously bobbing in a boat entertained b kingfishers Is not so readily achieved: it takes effort to stop time and nature from drying canals out, or to prevent the onrush of motorised human activity from taking them over. This tension, as JONATHAN BRIGGS explains, has shaped the history of a very special wildlife paradise, the Montgomery Canal.

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Down on the reserve

Above the ancient, gnarled oak wood at Tycanol, on the north Pembrokeshire coast, is a boulder-strewn heath. The efforts of a few ponies were failing to control burgeoning gorse and bracken, into which the boulders and their unique collection of lichens were submerging. IESTYN EVANS was given the job of retrieving the situation.

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Danger from the skies

The insidious nature of many pollutants, invisible to the naked eye, makes tracking them and understanding their environmental effects all the more important. The scale of nitrogen pollution is truly shocking, equivalent to several bags of nitrogen fertiliser being spread over each hectare of our most sensitive upland habitats each year. As SIMON BAREHAM and BRIDGET EMMET report, the search is on the address the effects of aerial nitrogen pollution on wildlife habitats.

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Porpoise watching – secrets of the North Anglesey coast

A stretch of wild and beautiful coast, with panoramic sea views, offers the chance of seeing dolphins and porpoises, and helping to uncover the secret life of these truly amazing mammals. EMILY FLEUR DICKS and NIA HÂF JONES reveal all.

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