This week I am really excited to announce that our seasonal staff have started! It really begins to feel like a new year when fresh faces appear. For anyone who visited the watch site last season, hopefully you will remember Adam Murphy. He is very knowledgeable on peregrine falcons and even though we didn’t have any chicks he decided to come back this year to hopefully see through a successful breeding season.

Our seasonal ranger Alex just can’t seem to stay away from the place! He volunteered for over a year before working the latter half of the season last year, stepping in when our current ranger found another job elsewhere. It was really great to be able to offer him the job for the full season this year and you may remember him as he used to write this nature diary.

Other signs of spring include beautiful yellow wildflowers. I have always wondered why yellow flowers seem to be some of the first to flower in spring time. I have tried to find out but alas I am none the wiser. Perhaps one of you knows the reasons why?

Some of the flowers we have here include dainty pale yellow primroses that can be found along the boardwalk. Coltsfoot, which looks a bit like a dandelion but with a scaly stem; this can be found just below the surge tank and the top of the power station pipes. We also have marsh marigold and lesser celandine along our boardwalk. Marsh marigold has shiny green leaves and rather large yellow flowers. They particularly like the wetter, boggier parts along riverbanks. These flowers should start appearing over the next few weeks!

Laura Preston – Scottish Wildlife Trust, Falls of Clyde Ranger