Scotland’s Land Cover

Contents

• introduction
• Origins of Land Cover Mapping
• Scottish Biogeography
• Climate
• Geology and Soils
• Time
• Land Cover Mapping
• The Land Cover Map of Scotland
• Future Landscapes of Scotland
• Support Materials
• About

9. Support Materials

The poster and notes can be used to stimulate and support a range of practical activities in the classroom and elsewhere. The creative enjoyment of tackling current issues, from land cover mapping to Agenda 21, may enhance student interest in the geography curriculum. Awareness of broader issues may develop a keener sense of the range of allied career opportunities – from climatology to remote sensing, or from land use planning to environmental conservation – which can benefit from a foundation in geography.

Getting to grips with live data can be stimulating and informative. This section therefore provides a series of tables and summary diagrams for lessons and project work.

Poster

At the centre of the poster is a map of the land cover of Scotland, in which the classification of features has been summarised in a very few classes. These nevertheless illustrate some of the main characteristics of Scotland’s land cover [and broadly match the main land cover groups identified in Advances 5]. The map key has been turned into a bar chart to illustrate the relative extent of the mapped classes.

Above and left illustrates data capture methods (satellite, air and field survey), and the digitising of a paper map into electronic form for GIS use.

Diagonally from left to centre, the main environmental factors which have shaped Scotland’s land cover are illustrated. From centre to right, some of the new environmental concerns for the future are shown. Above the small maps (top right) is an illustration of land use and development pressures. Below is a scenario illustrating how altering land management practices such as grazing pressure can bring about more beneficial environmental effects.

Along the base of the poster is a ‘time line’, depicting some of the key changes which have taken place over the past 10,000 years.

Data tables

Prior to local government reorganisation in April 1996, Scotland was administered as nine Regions and three Islands Councils. They were reported as summary statistics in the Land Cover of Scotland 1988 Executive Summary and still provide a useful geographical unit of analysis.

Summary results for Scotland are followed by a set of 12 Regional tables which may be used to compare and contrast land cover across Scotland. A set of maps illustrates the distribution of some of the main types of land cover in Scotland