Celtic rainforest restoration work surpasses Scottish national target, giving hope for nature recovery

Internationally scarce and at risk of vanishing, Scotland’s temperate rainforests need every bit of help they can get

State-backed work to restore Scotland’s globally rare and threatened Celtic rainforests has exceeded national targets in the past year.

The native woodlands, also known as temperate or Atlantic rainforest, are just as significant and even less common than their better-known tropical counterparts.

They are found on Scotland’s west coast, in the ‘hyper-oceanic’ zone, where cool summers, mild winters, wet conditions and clean air provide ideal conditions for some of the world’s rarest plants and fungi to thrive.

But as little as 30,000 hectares are left across the country – just two per cent of Scotland’s total tree-cover and only a fifth of the area with suitable climatic conditions – and it’s feared this could be lost due to increasing threats from invasive alien species, fragmentation and poor management.

Revitalising the habitat can contribute to Scotland’s own biodiversity targets as well as wider efforts to reverse losses of nature and wildlife across the world.

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Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) has deployed a raft of measures to boost ranforests, including removal of invasive rhododendrons, restoring plantations on ancient woodland sites and shooting deer to reduce damage to young trees and ground vegetation.

Scotland’s native Celtic rainforests, found on the west coast, are just as significant and even rarer than their tropical counterparts – but the habitat is under threat, with as little as 30,000 hectares left across the country

According to the agency, it has surpassed its 2023-2024 rainforest restoration target by more than 40 per cent.

The over-shoot is an “amazing result” that gives hope for the future, bosses say.

Colin Edwards, environment manager for FLS, said: “This habitat is home to a rich biodiversity, including a unique selection of oceanic bryophytes and lichens.

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Forestry and Land Scotland has exceeded its most recent rainforest restoration targets by more than 40 per cent

“Protecting this environment involves rhododendron-removal work and deer management, both of which have been our priorities for over a decade.

“However, there is still a huge area to cover and a lot of work to do, so being able to over-reach our target by a considerable margin is a real boost.

“It’s a sign of the level of commitment of our teams around the country and a measure of how much they care about their work that our staff have managed to deliver this amazing result.

“In what is a never-ending task it’s good to get a glimpse every now and then of light at the end of the tunnel.”