Mini bioblitz in the Astley Ainslie

We were invited by local resident Jean to do a mini preliminary survey of the biodiversity of the grounds of the Astley Ainslie hospital in Morningside. The aim - apart from having fun - was to begin to raise awareness of its importance as a green corridor through the city for wildlife and people. The site is owned by the NHS but is likely to be redeveloped in future, so understanding its importance as part of Edinburgh Living Landscape is timely.

Five of us spent a leisurely couple of hours exploring and I listed all the species we identified in that time. It was not a scientific survey, but we all had smatterings of wildflower knowledge, were all trying to learn our bumblebees, and John could recognise birds from their song which as far as I'm concerned is a skill bordering on magic.

We easily made a list of 66 species, over 50 of which were native:

1. Wych elm
2. Common lime
3. Ash
4. Silver birch
5. Holly
6. Alder
7. Elder
8. Scots pine
9. Goat willow
10. Yew
11. Pedunculate oak
12. Rowan
13. Ivy 
14. Stinging nettle
15. Goosegrass
16. Bramble
17. Raspberry
18. Creeping buttercup
19. Meadow buttercup
20. Ribwort plantain
21. White clover
22. Red clover
23. Lesser stitchwort
24. Wood avens
25. Willowherb
26. Wood forget-me-not
27. Herb robert
28. Meadow cranesbill
29. Garlic mustard
30. Dandelion
31. Sanicle
32. St Johns Wort
33. Coltsfoot
34. Common ragwort
35. Broom
36. Foxglove
37. Daisy
38. Cocksfoot grass
39. Wood pigeon
40. Jackdaw
41. Magpie
42. Wren
43. Robin
44. Blackcap
45. Goldcrest
46. Swift
47. Song thrush
48. Blackbird
49. Chiff chaff
50. Wood wasp
51. Common carder bee
52. Buff tailed bumblebee
53. Tree bumblebee
54. Rabbit
55. Grey squirrel
56. Sycamore
57. Norway maple
58. Horse chestnut 
59. Sweet chestnut
60. Beech
61. Turkey oak
62. Deodar cedar
63. Blue Atlas cedar
64. Rhododendron ponticum
65. Monkey puzzle
66. Green alkanet
67. Himalayan balsam
68. Japanese knotweed

We didn't know our beetles! Photo by Kay

Some of the non-natives were superb trees from when the grounds were formal parkland. There were large numbers of the recently-arrived Tree bumblebee. We also noted the invasive Himalayan balsam and Japanese knotweed, and arranged to contact the Council about the latter.

The range of old trees was spectacular, as was the diversity of flowers, including woodland flowers like Sanicle which indicates ancient woodland. There were plenty more flowers, grasses, mosses, ferns and invertebrates which we didn't have time or skill to identify. We felt we'd had a glimpse into a treasury on our doorstep.

You can see future events and sign up on the Wild Reekie Meetup page. You can also follow me on twitter at @eleanormharris or email me at eleanormharris@gmail.com. 

Bunny and rhododendron, by Kay