Land cover change (aerial features in sq. km, linear features in km): 1940s - 1980s
SOURCE: SNH
Year Feature Group and Type lower (1) Extent upper (1)
1940s Grassland - Rough Grassland 11,014 12,331 13,804
1940s Grassland - Intermediate Grassland 2,896 3,278 3,711
1940s Grassland - Smooth Grassland 6,932 7,543 8,207
1940s Mire - Heather Dominated Blanket Mire 11,784 13,967 16,555
1940s Mire - Grass Dominated Blanket Mire 7,079 8,749 10,813
1940s Mire - Lowland Mire 125 229 418
1940s Heather Moorland 12,599 14,615 16,954
1940s Arable 6,764 7,745 8,870
1940s Woodland - Broadleaved Woodland 1,275 1,509 1,786
1940s Woodland - Mixed Woodland 388 542 757
1940s Woodland - Broadleaved Plantation 17 33 65
1940s Woodland - Parkland 59 78 105
1940s Woodland - Coniferous Woodland 105 206 404
1940s Woodland - Young Plantation 261 430 708
1940s Woodland - Coniferous Plantation 677 837 1,035
1940s Woodland - Felled Woodland 19 29 45
1940s Fresh water - Lochs 843 1,193 1,688
1940s Fresh water - Reservoirs 82 150 277
1940s Fresh water - Rivers 190 229 277
1940s Fresh water - Canals 3 7 16
1940s Fresh water - Marginal Inundation 32 46 64
1940s Fresh water - Wet Ground 454 572 720
1940s Built and bare ground - Built 800 897 1,006
1940s Built and bare ground - Recreation 50 71 101
1940s Built and bare ground - Transport Corridor 608 669 737
1940s Built and bare ground - Quarry 30 45 67
1940s Built and bare ground - Rock 281 450 721
1940s Built and bare ground - Bare Ground 27 42 66
1940s Bracken and scrub - Bracken 512 710 984
1940s Bracken and scrub - Low Scrub 379 442 515
1940s Bracken and scrub - Tall Scrub 157 192 234
1940s Linear - Hedgerows 35,436 42,556 51,106
1940s Linear - Treeline 15,982 17,611 19,406
1940s Linear - Streams 121,803 129,579 137,850
1940s Linear - Ditches 39,833 49,478 61,458
1940s Linear - Tracks 25,969 29,258 32,965
1970s Grassland - Rough Grassland 9,901 11,052 12,337
1970s Grassland - Intermediate Grassland 3,326 3,726 4,173
1970s Grassland - Smooth Grassland 7,330 7,970 8,666
1970s Mire - Heather Dominated Blanket Mire 10,736 12,782 15,220
1970s Mire - Grass Dominated Blanket Mire 6,947 8,599 10,643
1970s Mire - Lowland Mire 84 166 329
1970s Heather Moorland 9,993 11,820 13,982
1970s Arable 6,588 7,453 8,431
1970s Woodland - Broadleaved Woodland 1,095 1,297 1,534
1970s Woodland - Mixed Woodland 360 501 696
1970s Woodland - Broadleaved Plantation 24 38 61
1970s Woodland - Parkland 49 70 99
1970s Woodland - Coniferous Woodland 60 107 190
1970s Woodland - Young Plantation 2,280 2,877 3,630
1970s Woodland - Coniferous Plantation 2,486 2,972 3,552
1970s Woodland - Felled Woodland 38 75 150
1970s Fresh water - Lochs 758 1,102 1,604
1970s Fresh water - Reservoirs 175 288 474
1970s Fresh water - Rivers 185 224 272
1970s Fresh water - Canals 4 8 17
1970s Fresh water - Marginal Inundation 34 51 76
1970s Fresh water - Wet Ground 422 525 654
1970s Built and bare ground - Built 1,089 1,214 1,354
1970s Built and bare ground - Recreation 103 140 191
1970s Built and bare ground - Transport Corridor 658 750 854
1970s Built and bare ground - Quarry 45 71 110
1970s Built and bare ground - Rock 282 451 722
1970s Built and bare ground - Bare Ground 52 70 95
1970s Bracken and scrub - Bracken 581 776 1,037
1970s Bracken and scrub - Low Scrub 381 441 510
1970s Bracken and scrub - Tall Scrub 170 220 284
1970s Linear - Hedgerows 21,077 25,282 30,326
1970s Linear - Treeline 14,061 15,946 18,083
1970s Linear - Streams 120,327 127,937 136,029
1970s Linear - Ditches 51,313 62,432 75,961
1970s Linear - Tracks 32,074 35,952 40,298
1980s Grassland - Rough Grassland 10,112 11,130 12,250
1980s Grassland - Intermediate Grassland 3,401 3,757 4,150
1980s Grassland - Smooth Grassland 6,266 6,738 7,245
1980s Mire - Heather Dominated Blanket Mire 8,438 10,132 12,167
1980s Mire - Grass Dominated Blanket Mire 6,215 7,798 9,784
1980s Mire - Lowland Mire 63 127 256
1980s Heather Moorland 9,630 11,294 13,246
1980s Arable 7,644 8,593 9,659
1980s Woodland - Broadleaved Woodland 980 1,164 1,382
1980s Woodland - Mixed Woodland 244 341 476
1980s Woodland - Broadleaved Plantation 26 38 56
1980s Woodland - Parkland 53 73 100
1980s Woodland - Coniferous Woodland 70 108 167
1980s Woodland - Young Plantation 3,581 4,426 5,471
1980s Woodland - Coniferous Plantation 4,102 4,705 5,396
1980s Woodland - Felled Woodland 67 108 175
1980s Fresh water - Lochs 738 1,078 1,573
1980s Fresh water - Reservoirs 200 323 521
1980s Fresh water - Rivers 186 224 270
1980s Fresh water - Canals 3 7 13
1980s Fresh water - Marginal Inundation 43 56 73
1980s Fresh water - Wet Ground 583 680 795
1980s Built and bare ground - Built 1,151 1,312 1,495
1980s Built and bare ground - Recreation 128 168 222
1980s Built and bare ground - Transport Corridor 753 816 884
1980s Built and bare ground - Quarry 36 92 232
1980s Built and bare ground - Rock 245 377 578
1980s Built and bare ground - Bare Ground 130 219 370
1980s Bracken and scrub - Bracken 1,001 1,268 1,606
1980s Bracken and scrub - Low Scrub 390 446 510
1980s Bracken and scrub - Tall Scrub 198 240 291
1980s Linear - Hedgerows 16,913 19,463 22,397
1980s Linear - Treeline 15,893 17,471 19,206
1980s Linear - Streams 123,820 131,058 138,719
1980s Linear - Ditches 86,322 99,621 114,970
1980s Linear - Tracks 34,518 37,760 41,306
Change 1940s-1980s Grassland - Rough Grassland -2,149 -1,201 -253
Change 1940s-1980s Grassland - Intermediate Grassland 29 479 929
Change 1940s-1980s Grassland - Smooth Grassland -1,502 -805 -108
Change 1940s-1980s Mire - Heather Dominated Blanket Mire -5,554 -3,835 -2,117
Change 1940s-1980s Mire - Grass Dominated Blanket Mire -2,561 -951 660
Change 1940s-1980s Mire - Lowland Mire -164 -102 -40
Change 1940s-1980s Heather Moorland -4,428 -3,321 -2,214
Change 1940s-1980s Arable 207 848 1,488
Change 1940s-1980s Woodland - Broadleaved Woodland -450 -345 -241
Change 1940s-1980s Woodland - Mixed Woodland -295 -201 -108
Change 1940s-1980s Woodland - Broadleaved Plantation -14 5 25
Change 1940s-1980s Woodland - Parkland -33 -5 23
Change 1940s-1980s Woodland - Coniferous Woodland -212 -97 17
Change 1940s-1980s Woodland - Young Plantation 3,040 3,996 4,953
Change 1940s-1980s Woodland - Coniferous Plantation 3,241 3,868 4,494
Change 1940s-1980s Woodland - Felled Woodland 23 79 134
Change 1940s-1980s Fresh water - Lochs -215 -115 -15
Change 1940s-1980s Fresh water - Reservoirs 47 172 298
Change 1940s-1980s Fresh water - Rivers -20 -5 10
Change 1940s-1980s Fresh water - Canals -3 0 2
Change 1940s-1980s Fresh water - Marginal Inundation -5 11 26
Change 1940s-1980s Fresh water - Wet Ground -47 109 265
Change 1940s-1980s Built and bare ground - Built 299 415 530
Change 1940s-1980s Built and bare ground - Recreation 57 98 138
Change 1940s-1980s Built and bare ground - Transport Corridor 106 146 186
Change 1940s-1980s Built and bare ground - Quarry -34 47 127
Change 1940s-1980s Built and bare ground - Rock -176 -73 29
Change 1940s-1980s Built and bare ground - Bare Ground 59 177 295
Change 1940s-1980s Bracken and scrub - Bracken 256 558 860
Change 1940s-1980s Bracken and scrub - Low Scrub -69 4 77
Change 1940s-1980s Bracken and scrub - Tall Scrub 9 48 88
Change 1940s-1980s Linear - Hedgerows -28,987 -23,093 -17,200
Change 1940s-1980s Linear - Treeline -1,398 -140 1,118
Change 1940s-1980s Linear - Streams -4,197 1,480 7,157
Change 1940s-1980s Linear - Ditches 34,843 50,143 65,444
Change 1940s-1980s Linear - Tracks 4,656 8,501 12,347
Footnotes
Linear features are hedgerows, treeline, streams, ditches and tracks; figures are lengths in kilometres. All other features
are aerial; figures are areas in square kilometres.
(1) 'lower' and 'upper' figures are the limits of a 95% confidence interval for the estimate.
SOURCE DETAILS
SOURCE Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), from the National Countryside Monitoring Scheme
(NCMS)
WEBSITE http://www.snh.gov.uk/publications-data-and-research/trends/scotlands-trends/land-cover-
change/
CONTACT Evidence Base Unit, Trends & Indicators
ADDRESS Scottish Natural Heritage
Silvan House, 231 Corstorphine Road
Edinburgh
EH12 7AT
TELEPHONE 0131 316 2632
FAX 0131 316 2690
EMAIL ed.mackey@snh.gov.uk
DESCRIPTION National Countryside Monitoring Scheme (NCMS) estimates of the area of land
cover types in Scotland, for c.1947, c.1973 and c.1988, together with changes in
land cover between the 1940s and 1980s. Upper and lower 95% confidence
intervals are given for all figures.
GEOGRAPHIC Stratified random sample of 7.5% of Scotland's land area.
COVERAGE
MEASURE Area of aerial habitats features; length of linear features; confidence intervals
UNITS Square kilometres; kilometres; 95% upper and lower CIs.
START YEAR c.1947
END YEAR c.1988
FREQUENCY OF Completed in 1998
DATA PUBLICATION
LAST UPDATED November 2009 (web version - commentary and links only)
PROBABLE MONTH No update envisaged.
OF NEXT UPDATE
COMMENTARY
Background Land Cover in Scotland extends from readily identifiable features of the built environment,
through a managed countryside of farming, forestry and sporting estates, and into less clearly
differentiated habitats of rough grassland, moor and bog which characterise much of the
unenclosed uplands. Monitoring changes in land cover can provide information that may be
used to help improve land management practices, inform land use policies and develop habitat
protection policies.
The ‘National Countryside Monitoring Scheme’ (NCMS) used archive air photography to
investigate the magnitude and rate of land cover variation. The dates examined were c .1947
(as economic imperatives promoted the modernisation and expansion of farming and forestry),
c .1973 (when the UK joined the European Economic Communities) and c .1988 (as
environmental balance in rural policies was receiving greater recognition).
467 random sample squares were designed, covering 7.5% of Scotland's land area. Land
cover was classified into 31 aerial features, such as heather moorland, and 5 linear features,
such as hedgerows. For more information, see Tudor. G.J. et al, 1999 (1).
Trends Over the period from c.1947-c.1988, significant changes have taken place within Scotland’s
urban and rural environment. The largest change was the increase in woodland (from about 5
to 14% of Scotland), primarily due to the increase of coniferous plantation forest throughout the
Highlands and Southern Uplands. This accounted for much of the decline in heather, mire and
grassland in the uplands. In the lowlands, arable expanded at the expense of grassland.
Transport links were transformed through a programme of road building and improvement, and
built & bare ground increased mainly onto lowland farmland. For more information see
Mackey, E.C. et al, 1998 (2).
References (1) Tudor, G.J., Shewry, M.C., Mackey, E.C., Elston, D.A. and Underwood, F.M. (1999). "Land
Cover Change in Scotland: the Methodology of the National Countryside Monitoring Scheme.
Scottish Natural Heritage Research, Survey and Monitoring Report No 127". Scottish Natural
Heritage, Perth.
(2) Mackey, E.C., Shewry, M.C. and Tudor, G.J. (1998). "Land Cover Change: Scotland from
the 1940s to the 1980s. The Stationery Office, Edinburgh".
SITE NAME DESCRIPTION ADDRESS
National Countryside Information on the National Countryside Monitoring http://www.snh.gov.uk/publications-data-and-
Monitoring Scheme Scheme, including an overview of the study and a research/trends/scotlands-trends/land-cover-
summary pdf. change/land-cover-1947--1988/
Countryside Survey A UK-wide study of land cover change (superceded http://www.countrysidesurvey.org.uk/outputs/s
NCMS). Scotland results are available from the cotland-results-2007
website.