Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve NTS

Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve NTS The Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve, is a range of mountains, ridges, cliffs and lochans and home to a celebrated collection of mountain plants.

If you've made the approach up Meall Corranaich recently, you might have noticed we've done some rerouting.To protect re...
12/06/2026

If you've made the approach up Meall Corranaich recently, you might have noticed we've done some rerouting.

To protect recently restored peatlands from any further damage and to help prevent footpath erosion, we've marked a route along the west side of the ridge. We'll be making further improvements to the path over the next few months too.

You can find the updated route on the WalkHighlands website or just remember to follow the waymarkers until you rejoin the fenceline.

This time last week we were out with the Conservation Volunteers International Program 'beating up' previously planted m...
10/06/2026

This time last week we were out with the Conservation Volunteers International Program 'beating up' previously planted mountain woodland areas on the lower slopes of the Ben Lawers reserve.

'Beating up' is the process of replanting young trees in areas which have already been planted, to replace any which have died off over the first couple of years. This means we can maintain desired densities of trees in these area of mountain woodland, ensuring well-established and connected habitats, as well as species and genetic diversity amongst the trees!

Can you find the caterpillar camouflaged in the first photo?Somewhere in the photo you'll find the larval form of the mo...
08/06/2026

Can you find the caterpillar camouflaged in the first photo?

Somewhere in the photo you'll find the larval form of the mountain plume (Stenoptila islandicus). This elusive moth species is rare, with very few people having ever found the caterpillars (in the UK they have only been found on the Ben Lawers reserve). The caterpillars feed on mossy saxifrage (Saxifraga hypnoides), which is the plant species pictured here, so neither the larvae or the adult moth are ever found far from the foodplant!

The larvae was found on a recent survey done by the ecology team, given it's found in so few places, it's reassuring to know it's still here 🐛

Spot the caterpillar photo answer in the comments!

This week we've been joined by a group from Conservation Volunteers International Program and, coincidentally, this week...
06/06/2026

This week we've been joined by a group from Conservation Volunteers International Program and, coincidentally, this week is also Volunteers Week! These folks have come all the way from the states to help with a variety of tasks.

Over the week, we've been working on:

🥾 Track maintenance
🌳 Tree planting and monitoring
🔨 Fence removal

We've had our fair share of showery weather this week but the team have remained enthusiastic throughout, excited to explore the landscape, learn about species, and delve into the cultural heritage of Ben Lawers. A big thank you to all of you, it's been wonderful having you for the week🌿

04/06/2026

Who's been out listening for Ring Ouzels? The Ben Lawers Team!

These inquisitive black and white birds are part of the thrush family. We find them breeding on the Ben Lawers and Tarmachan summits this time of year, they particularly like the craggy upland areas.

Ring Ouzels are threatened in the UK (classified as red in the Birds of Conservation Concern List), so every 5 years we do monitoring to check how many breeding territories we have on the reserve. The males make this an easier task as they sit atop crags and boulders, claiming territories with songs and calls!

One of our seasonal staff Jenny, captured this video while out on her route 📸

You might spot a new crowd hanging around Ben Lawers NNR next time you visit 🐄After a successful season last year, we've...
01/06/2026

You might spot a new crowd hanging around Ben Lawers NNR next time you visit 🐄

After a successful season last year, we've welcomed back a small herd of cattle to help manage grazing on the lower slopes of the mountain.

They each wear NoFence collars which allow us to target areas for grazing and trampling, helping to promote natural regeneration of woodlands, heath, and peatland.

Great to be joined by the NTS Mountain Path Team at the reserve last week taking a look at the Tarmachan, Meall Corranai...
30/05/2026

Great to be joined by the NTS Mountain Path Team at the reserve last week taking a look at the Tarmachan, Meall Corranaich, and Ben Lawers mountain paths. The team will be back later in the season to complete trail improvements, fingers crossed they bring the sunshine next time too ☀️

The Ben Lawers NNR rangers have been fixing fences up on the skyline over the last few weeks. Each year we need to make ...
27/05/2026

The Ben Lawers NNR rangers have been fixing fences up on the skyline over the last few weeks.

Each year we need to make repairs to exclosure fencing to protect our montane scrub from grazing. The harsh winter weather and snow banks often do a bit of a number on our fences up on the hills so it's important that we get out to do a bit of repairs and maintenance as soon as we can. This helps to ensure that the trees get the best start to the growing season over the Spring and Summer, safe from the nibbling of sheep and deer!

A brilliant selection of bees can be found on the Ben Lawers NNR, the floral diversity provides an array of habitats for...
20/05/2026

A brilliant selection of bees can be found on the Ben Lawers NNR, the floral diversity provides an array of habitats for them.

You may have spotted any of the nine bumblebee species recorded on the reserve but a particular favourite is the scarce bilberry bumbleebee (Bombus monticola). This bumbleebee with it's fiery-red tail, is found in upland areas often feeding on, as you may have guessed, the flowers of the bilberry plant.

Or, if you've walked the morenish woodland trail recently, you may have spotted evidence of another kind of bee. Solitary bees (of which there are around 250 species in the uk!) generally create individual nests, burrowing into the ground in dry, sunny areas. Lots of these bees are willow specialists, meaning they can be found foraging on the willow catkins in our restored woodland areas.


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Killin
FK218TY

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+441567820988

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