Watch:

Channel 4 – Warmer temperatures threatening biodiversity in Scotland: https://www.channel4.com/news/warmer-temperatures-threatening-biodiversity-in-scotland

The River Muick is one of the larger upper Dee tributaries, and formerly an important site for Spring salmon. It is heavily influenced by land management for deer and sheep grazing. 

Combining several different techniques and measures, over four years we have carried out environmental restoration to benefit all wildlife and restore the river for salmon:

Nearly 140,000 native riverbank trees have been planted, covering around 92 hectares, to create large and small patches of woodland and scattered trees in some areas. The planting is helping to link up existing woodlands and improve habitat networks. The trees will provide leaf fall to feed invertebrates, reduce bankside erosion, help to ease water runoff during heavy rainfall and help mitigate climate change impacts through creation of shade over the river. 

The instream habitat has been enhanced with the addition of 70 Large Wood Structures (LWS), each made up of four wind-blown trees. These structures influence riverbed creation and create diverse instream habitats for fish and other aquatic wildlife, they provide shelter from predators, heat and from floods, and they catch nutrients. In time, these will be replaced by trees now growing along the edge of the River Muick.

20 wetland sites have been restored along the floodplain and areas for wading birds have been created to help manage extreme water levels and provide habitat. Helping with this are 190 leaky dams and debris dams installed in the side streams of the Muick, which slow water in floods and release water under low flow conditions. An old flood channel, previously blocked to drain land and make it suitable for agriculture, was reopened in 2021, creating new habitat for fish and space for flood waters. 

By providing restored and vibrant habitat to this catchment, salmon and trout have the best conditions in which to thrive and grow strong before they embark on their ocean journey. We are monitoring this catchment with the help of Balmoral Estate’s fish counter and through surveys of juvenile and spawning fish. We’ve already seen the benefits of the LWS as they have proved attractive for spawning salmon. 

This work has been funded by the Biodiversity Challenge Fund, Cairngorms Green Recovery Fund, Woodland Trust Scotland, Scottish Government’s Forestry Grant Scheme, private funders and donations and delivered in partnership with Balmoral and Glenmuick Estates.