Sarah Watts
@sarahwatts.bsky.social
Upland ecologist and manager of nature recovery at #Corrour, PhD researcher at the University of Stirling, and Chair of the Mountain Woodland Action Group. Treeline woodland, restoration ecology, arctic-alpine plants, #HighMountainTrees #MountainFlowers
Pinned
Sarah Watts
@sarahwatts.bsky.social
· Nov 22
Hi, I'm Sarah Watts & I've arrived on #BlueSky! I work on landscape-scale #NatureRecovery in the Scottish Highlands, focusing on #mountain #woodland, tree #regeneration with deer management, arctic-alpine plants, & #peatlands. I'm both a practitioner & researcher, striving for evidence-based action!
Reposted by Sarah Watts
Conservation Officer vacancy with @n-t-s.bsky.social 40 hours per week based at Mar Lodge Estate, Braemar, Aberdeenshire c-js.uk/4oubBG7
National Trust for Scotland: Conservation Officer advertised with CJS
Salary: £28,228 - £30,118 Hours: 40 hours per week Location: Mar Lodge Estate, Braemar, Aberdeenshire, AB35 5YJ Working at one of the most important sites for nature conservation in the UK, this…
c-js.uk
October 23, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Conservation Officer vacancy with @n-t-s.bsky.social 40 hours per week based at Mar Lodge Estate, Braemar, Aberdeenshire c-js.uk/4oubBG7
Reposted by Sarah Watts
Book your #ScotBotanistsConf place now! Its going to be a fantastic day @thebotanics.bsky.social, with brilliant talks on restoring montane woodland, Tufted Saxifrage, urban flora and much much more!
@sarahwatts.bsky.social @plantlifeuk.bsky.social @botsocscot.bsky.social @naturescot.bsky.social
@sarahwatts.bsky.social @plantlifeuk.bsky.social @botsocscot.bsky.social @naturescot.bsky.social
October 3, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Book your #ScotBotanistsConf place now! Its going to be a fantastic day @thebotanics.bsky.social, with brilliant talks on restoring montane woodland, Tufted Saxifrage, urban flora and much much more!
@sarahwatts.bsky.social @plantlifeuk.bsky.social @botsocscot.bsky.social @naturescot.bsky.social
@sarahwatts.bsky.social @plantlifeuk.bsky.social @botsocscot.bsky.social @naturescot.bsky.social
My best botanical day of the year! While hillwalking in the #Cairngorms we discovered a new, unrecorded population of the ultra rare Marsh Saxifrage (Saxifraga hirculus). This beautiful upland plant is a protected species & only found at a few sites in Scotland. #WildflowerHour #MountainFlowers
August 3, 2025 at 7:20 PM
My best botanical day of the year! While hillwalking in the #Cairngorms we discovered a new, unrecorded population of the ultra rare Marsh Saxifrage (Saxifraga hirculus). This beautiful upland plant is a protected species & only found at a few sites in Scotland. #WildflowerHour #MountainFlowers
Making the most of flower power! This week at #Corrour we have been repeat #monitoring to determine if our tall herbs and upland calcareous grasslands are continuing to recover after a reduction in deer densities on the estate. It's wonderful to study these lovely plants in a dynamic landscape!
August 1, 2025 at 1:14 PM
Making the most of flower power! This week at #Corrour we have been repeat #monitoring to determine if our tall herbs and upland calcareous grasslands are continuing to recover after a reduction in deer densities on the estate. It's wonderful to study these lovely plants in a dynamic landscape!
Reposted by Sarah Watts
Volunteers from our Tree Seed Collection Project recently visited Ben Lawers NNR for their annual trip to learn more about montane tree species.
Montane scrub is a rare and fragmented #habitat found in mountainous regions, where dwarfed #trees and shrubs dominate. 🌿
Learn more 👉 bit.ly/3IfJ2wq
Montane scrub is a rare and fragmented #habitat found in mountainous regions, where dwarfed #trees and shrubs dominate. 🌿
Learn more 👉 bit.ly/3IfJ2wq
July 8, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Volunteers from our Tree Seed Collection Project recently visited Ben Lawers NNR for their annual trip to learn more about montane tree species.
Montane scrub is a rare and fragmented #habitat found in mountainous regions, where dwarfed #trees and shrubs dominate. 🌿
Learn more 👉 bit.ly/3IfJ2wq
Montane scrub is a rare and fragmented #habitat found in mountainous regions, where dwarfed #trees and shrubs dominate. 🌿
Learn more 👉 bit.ly/3IfJ2wq
An interesting early morning start joining #forestry #PhD researcher Ben Wilson from @stir.ac.uk recording the #moths found in light traps set up at Loch Ossian woods on #Corrour. My favourite find of the day couldn't help but be the large & very charismatic Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi)!
June 23, 2025 at 11:49 AM
An interesting early morning start joining #forestry #PhD researcher Ben Wilson from @stir.ac.uk recording the #moths found in light traps set up at Loch Ossian woods on #Corrour. My favourite find of the day couldn't help but be the large & very charismatic Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi)!
Here's the delighted face of someone who has just said "This looks exactly like Carex rariflora habitat"...moments before finding Carex rariflora (Mountain Bog-sedge)! We've got our eye in on this Nationally Rare high-altitude plant & the special places it occurs. #WildflowerHour #MountainFlowers
June 22, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Here's the delighted face of someone who has just said "This looks exactly like Carex rariflora habitat"...moments before finding Carex rariflora (Mountain Bog-sedge)! We've got our eye in on this Nationally Rare high-altitude plant & the special places it occurs. #WildflowerHour #MountainFlowers
Lovely time botanising in the #Cairngorms finding Alpine Speedwell (Veronica alpina), Alpine Cat's-tail (Phleum alpinum), Alpine Foxtail (Alopecurus magellanicus), & a new record of Scottish Pearlwort (Sagina x normaniana) last recorded at this site 24 years ago!
#WildflowerHour #MountainFlowers
#WildflowerHour #MountainFlowers
June 22, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Lovely time botanising in the #Cairngorms finding Alpine Speedwell (Veronica alpina), Alpine Cat's-tail (Phleum alpinum), Alpine Foxtail (Alopecurus magellanicus), & a new record of Scottish Pearlwort (Sagina x normaniana) last recorded at this site 24 years ago!
#WildflowerHour #MountainFlowers
#WildflowerHour #MountainFlowers
Reposted by Sarah Watts
Want to see a map of where mega-rare Alpine Catchfly grows in Britain?
Check out its #PlantAtlas2020 page:
plantatlas2020.org/atlas/2cd4p9...
Our online Plant Atlas has pages for 3,495 plants with maps, info on conservation status & trends plus galleries of photos: all free for you to use & enjoy!
Check out its #PlantAtlas2020 page:
plantatlas2020.org/atlas/2cd4p9...
Our online Plant Atlas has pages for 3,495 plants with maps, info on conservation status & trends plus galleries of photos: all free for you to use & enjoy!
June 19, 2025 at 11:22 AM
Want to see a map of where mega-rare Alpine Catchfly grows in Britain?
Check out its #PlantAtlas2020 page:
plantatlas2020.org/atlas/2cd4p9...
Our online Plant Atlas has pages for 3,495 plants with maps, info on conservation status & trends plus galleries of photos: all free for you to use & enjoy!
Check out its #PlantAtlas2020 page:
plantatlas2020.org/atlas/2cd4p9...
Our online Plant Atlas has pages for 3,495 plants with maps, info on conservation status & trends plus galleries of photos: all free for you to use & enjoy!
How many #montane #scrub enthusiasts can you fit around a relict montane willow? We found out on a #Mountain #Woodland Action Group field trip to #Dalnacardoch Estate last week, while discussing exciting potential options for #regeneration & #restoration alongside landscape-scale deer management.
June 20, 2025 at 9:25 AM
How many #montane #scrub enthusiasts can you fit around a relict montane willow? We found out on a #Mountain #Woodland Action Group field trip to #Dalnacardoch Estate last week, while discussing exciting potential options for #regeneration & #restoration alongside landscape-scale deer management.
The ultra-mega-rare #Alpine Catchfly (Silene suecica) is only found in two sites in Britain! We were absolutely delighted to see it in full flower today while botanising in the #Cairngorms; growing on a very unusual high-altitude serpentine rock rich in magnesium. #mountainflowers #wildflowerhour
June 15, 2025 at 7:03 PM
The ultra-mega-rare #Alpine Catchfly (Silene suecica) is only found in two sites in Britain! We were absolutely delighted to see it in full flower today while botanising in the #Cairngorms; growing on a very unusual high-altitude serpentine rock rich in magnesium. #mountainflowers #wildflowerhour
Here's a plant that only occurs at one single place in the ENTIRE WORLD!! How special to see the #endemic Scottish Mouse-ear (Cerastium fontanum subsp. scoticum) in the #Cairngorms showing off its lovely long petals today, also alongside Cyphel (Cherleria sedoides). #mountainflowers #wildflowerhour
June 15, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Here's a plant that only occurs at one single place in the ENTIRE WORLD!! How special to see the #endemic Scottish Mouse-ear (Cerastium fontanum subsp. scoticum) in the #Cairngorms showing off its lovely long petals today, also alongside Cyphel (Cherleria sedoides). #mountainflowers #wildflowerhour
Delighted to have completed Phase 3 of our multi-year #peatland #restoration project at #Corrour with Peatland ACTION! The 245ha at Loch na Lap brings our total for this particular project to 648ha, & our overall peatland restoration area on the estate up to 870ha. Works by Barker and Bland.
June 11, 2025 at 10:10 AM
Delighted to have completed Phase 3 of our multi-year #peatland #restoration project at #Corrour with Peatland ACTION! The 245ha at Loch na Lap brings our total for this particular project to 648ha, & our overall peatland restoration area on the estate up to 870ha. Works by Barker and Bland.
How wonderful to receive these photos from the @treesforlife.bsky.social Dundreggan tree nursery who have been growing montane willows for us. These precious plants are to become our future seed stand for Whortle-leaved Willow on #Corrour; a high-altitude specialist listed as Endangered in Britain.
May 6, 2025 at 12:25 PM
How wonderful to receive these photos from the @treesforlife.bsky.social Dundreggan tree nursery who have been growing montane willows for us. These precious plants are to become our future seed stand for Whortle-leaved Willow on #Corrour; a high-altitude specialist listed as Endangered in Britain.
One of my very favourite jobs of the year: #monitoring our #montane #willows at #Corrour! These Downy Willow saplings were planted two years ago & they're flourishing, all on the open hill without the use of fencing. I'm looking forward to surveying some of our other planting sites next week. 🤗 🤩
May 2, 2025 at 7:16 PM
One of my very favourite jobs of the year: #monitoring our #montane #willows at #Corrour! These Downy Willow saplings were planted two years ago & they're flourishing, all on the open hill without the use of fencing. I'm looking forward to surveying some of our other planting sites next week. 🤗 🤩
I had a fantastic #fieldwork day this week planting Downy Willow (Salix lapponum) saplings for an experiment designed by PhD student Rory Abernethy @stir.ac.uk. Their growth & survival will be assessed as part of #research on Sitka Spruce colonisation at the treeline in Scotland.
April 24, 2025 at 1:39 PM
I had a fantastic #fieldwork day this week planting Downy Willow (Salix lapponum) saplings for an experiment designed by PhD student Rory Abernethy @stir.ac.uk. Their growth & survival will be assessed as part of #research on Sitka Spruce colonisation at the treeline in Scotland.
I had a very interesting, unique & fun day of sunny #fieldwork this week on Ben Ledi with our University of Stirling 1st year PhD student Rory Abernethy who is studying Sitka Spruce colonisation at the treeline in Scotland. We were tagging trees for a planned experiment @stir.ac.uk.
April 10, 2025 at 2:14 PM
I had a very interesting, unique & fun day of sunny #fieldwork this week on Ben Ledi with our University of Stirling 1st year PhD student Rory Abernethy who is studying Sitka Spruce colonisation at the treeline in Scotland. We were tagging trees for a planned experiment @stir.ac.uk.
I had a very productive & enjoyable day of #fieldwork last week promoting #montane #willow #conservation! Great to join a team from @hutton.ac.uk & Catkin Ecology working in Glen Lochay to collect cuttings for creating new local provenance seed stands from five threatened willow species!
April 7, 2025 at 9:02 PM
I had a very productive & enjoyable day of #fieldwork last week promoting #montane #willow #conservation! Great to join a team from @hutton.ac.uk & Catkin Ecology working in Glen Lochay to collect cuttings for creating new local provenance seed stands from five threatened willow species!
Fantastic weather this weekend for a round of the epic "Fisherfield 6" in the North-West Highlands, featuring plenty of sunshine, wind, deer, mountains, ridges, scrambling, bog, big river crossings, & some very remote Scots Pine indeed. 🔭🤩🥰💪🏔️☀️
April 7, 2025 at 8:18 PM
Fantastic weather this weekend for a round of the epic "Fisherfield 6" in the North-West Highlands, featuring plenty of sunshine, wind, deer, mountains, ridges, scrambling, bog, big river crossings, & some very remote Scots Pine indeed. 🔭🤩🥰💪🏔️☀️
We've begun a #riverwoods #restoration trial at #Corrour through the Loch Abar Mòr partnership. These small unfenced seed islands are intended to provide cover & nutrients along the river where seed sources are currently lacking. I'll be #monitoring their progress! #naturerichLochaber
April 3, 2025 at 4:24 PM
We've begun a #riverwoods #restoration trial at #Corrour through the Loch Abar Mòr partnership. These small unfenced seed islands are intended to provide cover & nutrients along the river where seed sources are currently lacking. I'll be #monitoring their progress! #naturerichLochaber
Rainy day roadside botanical safari staring the stunning arctic-alpine Purple #Saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) this weekend at Ben Lawers! #WildflowerHour #NTSBenLawers #botany #
March 30, 2025 at 8:24 PM
Rainy day roadside botanical safari staring the stunning arctic-alpine Purple #Saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) this weekend at Ben Lawers! #WildflowerHour #NTSBenLawers #botany #
We've planted more trees in our bespoke #montane #willow seed stand at #Corrour! These arctic-alpine Downy Willow are cuttings from wild plants on the estate. The stand has clones from 92 individuals to upscale seed production for the local area. It's the largest stand for this species in Britain!
March 27, 2025 at 4:52 PM
It was fun to take part in the panel discussion on nature restoration at #SNSC2025 this week with Professor Colin Galbraith, Nikki Yoxall, Ashleigh Kitchiner & Clive Mitchell. My advice to my early career peers to "embrace nerdiness, as much as possible" certainly got quite the reaction! 💪🤓
Time for our exciting panel discussion on “Nature Restoration and the role of people” in both Scotland and globally! #SNSC2025 @naturescot.bsky.social
March 21, 2025 at 1:51 PM
It was fun to take part in the panel discussion on nature restoration at #SNSC2025 this week with Professor Colin Galbraith, Nikki Yoxall, Ashleigh Kitchiner & Clive Mitchell. My advice to my early career peers to "embrace nerdiness, as much as possible" certainly got quite the reaction! 💪🤓
It was fantastic to be invited as a #keynote speaker at Scotland's Nature Student Conference #SNSC2025 this week & share my enthusiasm for mountain woodland #restoration! I really enjoyed hearing about lots of exciting ongoing research & joining the afternoon panel discussion @scotnsconf.bsky.social
Two key messages from #SNSC2025: we have a big problem, but we can do something about it.
@scottishgov.bsky.social CSA Mat Williams laying out reality - 47% native plants in decline, 1 in 9 Scottish species threatened with extinction, & @sarahwatts.bsky.social sharing hope for mountain woodlands
@scottishgov.bsky.social CSA Mat Williams laying out reality - 47% native plants in decline, 1 in 9 Scottish species threatened with extinction, & @sarahwatts.bsky.social sharing hope for mountain woodlands
March 21, 2025 at 1:44 PM
It was fantastic to be invited as a #keynote speaker at Scotland's Nature Student Conference #SNSC2025 this week & share my enthusiasm for mountain woodland #restoration! I really enjoyed hearing about lots of exciting ongoing research & joining the afternoon panel discussion @scotnsconf.bsky.social
Reposted by Sarah Watts
Two key messages from #SNSC2025: we have a big problem, but we can do something about it.
@scottishgov.bsky.social CSA Mat Williams laying out reality - 47% native plants in decline, 1 in 9 Scottish species threatened with extinction, & @sarahwatts.bsky.social sharing hope for mountain woodlands
@scottishgov.bsky.social CSA Mat Williams laying out reality - 47% native plants in decline, 1 in 9 Scottish species threatened with extinction, & @sarahwatts.bsky.social sharing hope for mountain woodlands
March 20, 2025 at 10:46 AM
Two key messages from #SNSC2025: we have a big problem, but we can do something about it.
@scottishgov.bsky.social CSA Mat Williams laying out reality - 47% native plants in decline, 1 in 9 Scottish species threatened with extinction, & @sarahwatts.bsky.social sharing hope for mountain woodlands
@scottishgov.bsky.social CSA Mat Williams laying out reality - 47% native plants in decline, 1 in 9 Scottish species threatened with extinction, & @sarahwatts.bsky.social sharing hope for mountain woodlands