Huge Rescue Mission to Save Endangered Scottish Plant

3400 tiny plants have been rescued in an attempt to save one of Scotland’s rarest wildflowers – One-flowered Wintergreen.

The beautiful, diminutive star-shaped wildflower found in pine woodlands, One-flowered Wintergreen Moneses uniflora, has declined dramatically in the last half a century. In the UK it can only be found in pine woods in North East Scotland.

It is estimated that more than half of the entire UK population of this flower has been lost over the last 50 years.

Plantlife Scotland, alongside partners Forestry and Land Scotland and NatureScot, and with the help of volunteers, have successfully rescued thousands of the rare flowers through a process called translocation (the movement of a species from one location to another).

One-flowered Wintergreen, which has gone extinct from more than half of 20 Scottish sites in the last few decades, has been clinging on at seven remaining sites – with a mere three of those home to a healthy population.

The translocation process involved:

• With the help of volunteers, the plants were removed from a shorefront where thousands of wildflowers were at risk of falling into the sea. About 2-3 metres of land has collapsed into the sea over the last few years – and is set to continue.
• The translocation process at Culbin Forest involved cutting and removing sections of soil around the plants. This was important as it ensured
  the fungi networks, which are vital to the survival and germination of the species, were moved with the plants to help them survive.
• One-flowered Wintergreen is often found growing in a fungi-rich area. Instead of relying on photosynthesis to create energy to survive, One-flowered Wintergreen can also take energy from fungus in woodland soils (known as a partial-mycoheterotroph).
• This complexity has made One-flowered Wintergreen challenging for conservationists to understand and restore, but it also makes it a valuable indicator species for understanding the role of fungi in pine woodlands.

One-flowered Wintergreen has suffered a sharp decline globally and is at risk of disappearing from Scotland and the UK altogether due to a variety of reasons. Changes to forest management over the last few centuries have gradually impacted the conditions needed for the fungi, that give energy to One-flowered Wintergreen, to thrive in the soil. The increase of hotter, drier conditions due to the climate crisis has also reduced the moisture in the soils on which the plant relies, contributing to its decline, particularly in upland areas.

Ruaridh Maxwell, Environment Forester at Forestry and Land Scotland said: “Culbin is a unique forest that supports more than 550 flowering plant species, including One-flowered Wintergreen. Forestry and Land Scotland’s low-impact management – including continuous cover forestry – helps maintain the conditions this rare plant needs to thrive, with carefully managed disturbance creating opportunities for it to establish and persist. We were pleased to support this translocation and work alongside partners to secure the future of one of Scotland’s rarest wildflowers. The project demonstrates how Scotland’s national forests can play an important role in protecting threatened species while continuing to deliver sustainable timber, climate and community benefits.”

Iain Macdonald, Biodiversity Adviser at NatureScot said: “It was so rewarding to be part of the One-flowered Wintergreen rescue mission. We don’t yet know how many plants will survive at their new home in Culbin Forest, but we do know that it was only a matter of time before they would have all been lost to the sea if we’d left them where they were. So, any survival will be a success, and if we can continue to introduce more plants to some of the small, existing populations then we’ll strengthen their ability to cope with our changing environment.”

The newly planted flowers will now be revisited routinely and monitored over the next few months and years – whilst we don’t expect to see any immediate signs, after a year we should see some changes that will show if the new homes are suitable or not.

Surviving the first year of translocation is a good indicator to their onward viability, followed by signs of reproduction and an expanding population. This translocation will teach us more about how we can work to save this species, such as determining whether seed or plant translocation is the best approach.

Images available to use with a credit can be found here.