Re-introduction of small cow-wheat into the Scottish Highlands, UK

Summary

Small cow-wheat (Melampyrum sylvaticum), an annual upland woodland plant restricted to 19 isolated Scottish Highland sites with poor dispersal and genetic divergence between populations, was introduced to five new sites within the Highland Perthshire Core Forest Area to test methods for future large-scale work. Researchers from the University of Aberdeen, Forest Research, and the Scottish Wildlife Trust selected three donor populations representing lowland, upland, and montane woodland types based on size and genetic diversity. In August 2005, seed was collected from 100 plants per donor population and sown from 20 plants per population into three fenced exclosures at each of five sites, Upper and Lower Deil's Cauldron, Carie, Kynachan, and Rumbling Bridge, with leaf tissue collected for genetic monitoring. In 2006, 94 seedlings germinated and 29 survived to maturity, with germination ranging from 8 to 28 percent across sites; germination patterns reversed in 2007 as dormant 2005 seed emerged at different sites, showing no consistent difference in donor or site suitability once dormancy was accounted for. However, survival to maturity remained unexpectedly low: by 2007 the five sites held only 3, 2, 2, 1, and 0 adult plants respectively, far below the roughly 10 or more expected from natural population estimates. Landowner concerns about future land management were a recurring difficulty. The project rated itself Partially Successful, noting it is too early to judge whether the introduced populations will persist, though the trial has already yielded useful methodological lessons for future introductions regardless of outcome.