Many of the rare arctic-alpine plants found growing on Scotland’s mountains are in retreat and teetering on the brink of extinction. Plants such as snow pearlwort, alpine lady-fern and alpine speedwell thrive in the cool conditions high on the mountains, but a Stirling University study found these plants were retreating higher up the mountain slopes.
Almost the entire British population of snow pearlwort is found on Ben Lawers in Perthshire, but two-thirds of the colonies have disappeared from the mountain over the past 40 years, while drooping saxifrage is now only found 50 metres from the top.
