Landscape-scale vegetation change in the Cairngorms, Scotland, 1946–1988: Implications for land management Original Research Article

Land cover change data were derived from interpretation of aerial photographs taken in 1946 and 1988 for 1000 km2 area of the Cairngorms area, Scotland. These data are compared with qualitative predictions based on the successional models of Miles (1985 J. Soil. Sci., 36). The impacts of man are shown to have been of the greatest magnitude, with conifer planting showing the greatest net increase in area between 1946 and 1988. Successional changes in seminatural vegetation did occur but none totalled more than 5 km2. Areas of semi-natural woodland were already scarce by 1946, but the extensive areas of heather also showed few successional transitions to other communities, such as grassland, scrub or woodland. The findings are discussed in relation to changes in land use and herbivore densities over this time period. The theoretical successional framework of Miles (1985), with the important addition of the more direct effects of man, is shown to be a valuable tool for the examination of vegetation change data and the implications for management in an area such as the Cairngorms.