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Habitats of an Urban Nature Habitats of an Urban Nature ReserveReserve
An illustrated case study of Possil An illustrated case study of Possil Marsh Nature Reserve, GlasgowMarsh Nature Reserve, Glasgow
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.
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OverviewOverview
Possil Marsh, shown left, is an area of semi-natural habitat set in a man-made landscape. As shown here, to the north the land is used for agriculture and the Campsie Fells located 11 kilometres to the north can be seen from the reserve.
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OverviewOverview
To the south and east of Possil Marsh lie areas of housing. While to the west lies Balmore Road, a busy A road leading into the centre of Glasgow. On the other side of this road lies Lambhill cemetery and crematorium.
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OverviewOverview
This rest of this presentation consists of photographs illustrating the semi-natural habitats that make up the reserve and provide a home to the reserve’s unexpectedly rich urban biodiversity
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Neutral GrasslandNeutral Grassland
Grassland growing on soil with neutral ph
Hills and farmland outside
the reserve
Scattered stunted trees and shrubs, known as scrub
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Tall HerbTall Herb
Tall herb, which can include willow herb, bramble and a variety of seeding plants can provide good protection for nesting birds and a food source in winter
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Scrub HabitatScrub Habitat
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Dense ScrubDense Scrub
These stunted trees and bushes are typical of scrub habitat. The trees are kept to a small stature because of poor quality soils and/or flooding that prevents strong root systems need to support larger trees
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Fen HabitatFen Habitat
Fen is low, flat swampy land or bog.
Swamp is seasonally flooded bottom land often with woody plants.
Bog is soft, naturally waterlogged land.
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Swamp habitatSwamp habitat
The seasonal drying out of swampy habitat often allows woody plants that would be absent in wetter marsh to grow. The bullrushes shown here are also typical of swamp.
Woody plants
Bull rushes
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Artificial drainageArtificial drainage
Swamp usually has better drainage than marsh or bog allowing a greater amount of seasonal drying out. Drainage can either be natural or in the case of Possil Marsh artificial drainage can allow management of water levels
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BogBog
Bogs are usually wet and spongy underfoot
The substrate of a bog is frequently composed of spagnum moss
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Marsh & MireMarsh & Mire
Marsh is usually wetter than a bog, with standing water that to be crossed needs to be waded through most of the year. Mire is wet, soggy and muddy ground often around the edges of marsh.
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MarshMarsh
A close up of a typical marsh with the plants growing up through standing water
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Open water habitatOpen water habitat
The open water found in the centre of the reserve is a key habitat for aquatic organisms and provides wintering or breeding habitat for ducks, swans, geese and gulls.
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Aquatic VegetationAquatic Vegetation
The open water is fringed by aquatic vegetation such as the reed beds shown here. Reed beds provide cover for breeding birds and a suitable habitat for many aquatic invertebrates.
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CarrCarr
As the habitat becomes drier aquatic vegetation gives way to marshy land and to bog. The next transition is to scrub, especially willow, and an area of bog or fen where scrub has become established is know as carr.
Carr
Aquatic vegetation
Marsh
Bog
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Willow CarrWillow Carr
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PondPond
Another aquatic habitat in the reserve is this pond which acts as a reed bed filter for water runoff from the adjacent arable land. Without such filtering much off the fertilizer applied to the fields would run straight in to the reserve’s aquatic habitats, increasing pollution and reducing biodiversity on the reserve
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Acidic and neutral grasslandAcidic and neutral grassland
Depending on the ph of the underlying soil grassland can be classed as acidic or neutral. In the foreground of this picture the presences of clumps of rushes indicates the grassland is acidic and growing on a peaty soil.
Acidic grassland
Neutral grassland
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CanalCanalLike many cities Glasgow has a network of human built canals that provided transport routes during the industrial revolution and now provide refuges for urban wildlife. One of these, the Forth and Clyde Canal runs along the reserve boundary.
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Hedgerow HabitatHedgerow Habitat
Hedge or hedgerow can be an important wildlife habitat as in an urban or agricultural landscape it can offer well grown trees and bushes providing food and shelter that are otherwise absent. The hedge shown here runs along the edge of the reserve and provides a much more complex and interesting wildlife habitat that a typically short and manicure suburban hedge.
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What types of habitat can you What types of habitat can you identify?identify?
Scrub
Tall herb
Grassland
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What types of habitat can you What types of habitat can you identify?identify?
Swamp
Marsh
Neutral grassland
Scrub
The whole area is fen
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What types of habitat can you What types of habitat can you identify?identify?
Tall herb
Scrub
or Carr
Marsh or mire
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What types of habitat can you What types of habitat can you identify?identify?
Swamp
Marsh or bog
Willow carr
Farmland
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AttributionAttribution
This presentation has been prepared by This presentation has been prepared by Ross MacLeodRoss MacLeod, , Division of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Division of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Glasgow and is based on the University of Glasgow’s Glasgow and is based on the University of Glasgow’s Conservation and Ecology field trip to Possil Marsh Nature Conservation and Ecology field trip to Possil Marsh Nature Reserve, Glasgow run by Dr Stewart WhiteReserve, Glasgow run by Dr Stewart White
The presentation and the photos within it have been released The presentation and the photos within it have been released as an Open Educational Resources under a Creative Commons as an Open Educational Resources under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License as part of Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License as part of a UK Centre of Bioscience Open Educational Resources project a UK Centre of Bioscience Open Educational Resources project http://http://www.bioscience.heacademy.ac.uk/resources/oerwww.bioscience.heacademy.ac.uk/resources/oer//
For more information and any feed back please contact For more information and any feed back please contact UK Centre of Bioscience UK Centre of Bioscience or or Ross MacLeodRoss MacLeod