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The Ythan Project
Monitoring
Although a lot is known about the Ythan estuary, relatively little is known about the river itself and the condition of some of its tributaries. In order to try and change this, and to ensure that local people had a chance to find out about some of the research work taking place regarding the river and the estuary, the project included several items of monitoring work. These included the following:• the collection of water quality data on some of the smaller tributaries around the catchment. Water samples were collected on a monthly basis by local volunteers and the samples were then analysed by staff at the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in Aberdeen. It is hoped that this sampling work will continue after the end of the project, but a summary of the data collected so far is included on the publications page.
• Habitat surveys of the river and tributaries. Surveys were undertaken during the summer months which enabled us to build up a picture of the wildlife habitat on the river and how extensively it has been modified by humans. The surveys were undertaken by project staff and volunteers who had received training from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. A summary of the survey findings is included on the publications page.
• The collection of aerial photos of the Ythan estuary mud flats during the summer months. Aerial photos were taken every year to try and establish whether or not the algal mats (the green weed) at the estuary are increasing. A summary of the findings from these photos and those taken in the years before the project is included on the publications page.
An alternative method of monitoring the spread of these weed mats was also trialled as part of the project. This involved using remote sensing techniques and a summary of the findings is included on the publications page.
• Counts of wading birds at the estuary – these enabled us to build up a picture of whether or not the algal mats are affecting the numbers of birds that feed at the estuary. A summary of the findings is included on the publications page.
• Survey of the two main waterbodies in the catchment – there are two lochs on the edge of the catchment and these were the subject of two surveys as part of the project. The first survey looked at the plants in the lochs to see how they were changing and to try and establish whether or not the loch water was becoming more nutrient rich. The second survey was a nutrient budget for the catchment areas of these lochs, to try and establish the main sources of the nutrients. Summaries of both these surveys can be found on the publications page.
• Monitoring of local people’s response to the project – because the project aimed to involve local people, we needed to know what people think of the work we’ve done and whether or not it has changed their attitude towards the river. This was assessed through the use of questionnaires, which were sent to a random sample of the local population at the beginning and end of the project. A summary of the survey findings is included on the publications page.Volunteers undertaking habitat surveys
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