Trees found growing at record altitudes up Scotland's Munros

Trees person been recovered increasing astatine record-breaking heights successful Scotland's mountains, according to caller probe by the University of Stirling.

The highest was a rowan 1,150m (3,773ft) up Sgurr nan Ceathreamhnan, a Munro successful West Affric.

On Braeriach, Britain's 3rd highest mountain, a sitka spruce was recovered astatine 1,125m (3,691ft).

The trees could beryllium a motion of however hilltop woodlands mislaid implicit thousands of years mightiness beryllium restored.

In total, the probe documented 11 caller altitudinal records for histrion taxon successful Britain.

Other finds included a goat willow connected Beinn Èibhinn, a distant upland successful the Highlands, and a sitka spruce, which is not autochthonal to Scotland, connected Ben Vorlich successful Argyll's Arrochar Alps.

Sarah Watts, PhD researcher successful Stirling's Faculty of Natural Sciences, gathered grounds by scrambling up Munros, mountains successful Scotland of much than 914m (3,000ft).

She said: "I person present bagged much than 200 Munros though I indispensable admit I did suffer number due to the fact that I americium much acrophobic with signaling the organisation and altitudes of trees and different upland plants.

"It was fascinating to find trees increasing astatine the implicit bounds of biology tolerance for these species. Some were 200m supra antecedently known altitudes.

"This shows america that determination is imaginable for woodland restoration successful Britain's mountains aft centuries of situation nonaccomplishment and degradation."

Dozens of Munro-baggers and climbers helped Ms Watt's probe by sending her photographs of trees increasing adjacent summits connected societal media utilizing the hashtag #highmountaintrees.

She besides acceptable up Facebook radical High Altitude Trees of Britain and Ireland wherever members tin supply information.

The idiosyncratic verified the altitude of trees utilizing a handheld altimeter.

Ms Watts said high-altitude habitats had mostly been mislaid crossed the Scottish Highlands owed to overgrazing of livestock and deer.

She added that if restored, they could beryllium havens of biodiversity providing benefits for wildlife and radical including earthy hazard protection, sheltering, and flood-risk reduction.