Thank you to everyone who brought and presented posters at #SNSC2026 - we were lucky to have such a wide range of fascinating topics and great engagement in great conversations about ongoing research!

Congratulations to our #SNSC2026 prize winners! Alice Turner delivered an amazing talk on the impact of human disturbance on #beaver foraging 🦫 Jess Frater presented an engaging poster on social acceptability of increased deer culling in Scotland @cieem.bsky.social @naturescot.bsky.social

We want to express a massive thank you to all of the organisations that contributed to the #SNSC2026 conference, including those who brought stalls and spoke to attendees. Without these organisations, this event would not be possible!

A big thanks to our student keynote speaker Adam Woodward for presenting work on light pollution and seabirds in Scotland. We look forward to hearing all about future work with @naturescot.bsky.social to tackle this! #SNSC2026

Ladybirds of a feather flock together? Callum Grant explores the question 'do ladybirds prefer to overwinter with conspecifics?' 🐞 #SNSC2026 @naturescot.bsky.social @stir.ac.uk

Ticked off! Woodland patch and landscape characteristics determine tick presence and density in Scotland by Benjamin Miller

Alleviating climate anxiety in undergraduate students using skills-based learning by @lindindin.bsky.social #SNSC2026 @stir.ac.uk @britishecologicalsociety.org

Measuring nature connectedness in children: A face validity investigation of the NCI by Zsuzsa Lugosi-Grant #SNSC2026 @naturescot.bsky.social @stir.ac.uk @nhm-london.bsky.social

that's a-boar-e! Belonging, Legitimacy and the Governance of Free-Living Sus scrofa in Contemporary Scotland: A Critical Discourse Analysis by Eleanor Foster #SNSC2026 @naturescot.bsky.social @stir.ac.uk

Building a web - Understanding online interest in invasive non-native species, presented by Ruth Wright at #SNSC2026 @ruth-wright.bsky.social @stir.ac.uk @naturescot.bsky.social @iapetusdtp.bsky.social

Poor-poise - Concentration patterns of intentionally and unintentionally produced PCBs in harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) stranded along the British coast - Presentation by Katerina Schiffnederova

Not got mush-room, unless you’re a willow! @sarahwatts.bsky.social is unearthing the ectomycorrhizal fungi co-occurring with relict arctic-alpine willows and restoration sites using eDNA

Taking the sting out: Controlling nettles to improve puffin breeding habitat - presentation by Finley Bruce

Gr-aspen the regeneration - from soil to suckers: drivers of clonal regeneration in Aspen (Populus tremula) at Muir of Dinnet NNR - Presentation by Callum Nicol from SRUC

Professor Kirsty Park ( @stir.ac.uk ) delivered her keynote speech on the WrEN project, undertaking a “natural experiment” approach to assess the effects of historic woodland creation on current biodiversity in order to inform future restoration actions

Day 2 of #SNSC2026 kicks off with an introduction from Stuart MacQuarrie (@naturescot.bsky.social) – hope isn’t just a feeling but a strategy. Hope-based action within environmental work delivers success and we have the proof!

Dam humans ruining my meal! 🦫 Alice Turner from @stir.ac.uk (and of SNSC organising committee fame) presents her PhD research on how human disturbance affects beaver foraging #SNSC2026 @naturescot.bsky.social

Peat and Tidy - Niamh Gurrin from the University of Edinburgh presents how peat bog restoration impacts stream water quality 💧 #SNSC2026 @naturescot.bsky.social @stir.ac.uk

I want to break tree! Sitka spruce colonisation of treeline environments in Scotland by Rory Abernethy 🌲 #SNSC2026 @naturescot.bsky.social @stir.ac.uk

All Time Crow 🪶 - our second student talks session kicks off with allofeeding and allopreening of a crow with a beak abnormality from Julia Chase

Our #SNSC2026 poster session is underway, with presenters discussing a wide range of environmental and ecological topics including blue crab, tansy beetles, ticks and more!

Having a whale of a time with our student keynote speaker Penny Clarke, detailing research from the recently completed PhD on how satellite imagery is giving insights into whale monitoring and conservation 🐋 #SNSC2026

Our #SNSC2026 panel explored how to navigate career pathways across in the environmental sector. We heard about "wiggly" career paths, and how they can lead to accumulation of diverse skillsets, how to gain experience in your area of interest, and how we can bridge gaps between research and policy.

Living life to the Gull-est! Helen Pruzina from @stir.ac.uk with work on modelling how resource use influences Herring Gulls

CoreGone? - Not on Ruaidhri's watch! Ruaidhri Forrester from University of Glasgow with a talk on assessing Vendance (Coregonus lavaretus) status in the UK

A "Newt" approach to monitoring Edinburgh's Great Crested Newt population from Finn McElrue-Inch and Luisa-Marie Dickenmann, highlighting the importance of volunteer monitoring efforts - sign up using the QR code if you are in the Edinburgh area for spring training!

Kicking "moth" session one of our student talks, we heard from Jemma Guthrie from the University of Glasgow presenting on the changing dynamics of of moth pollination networks in temperate rainforest ecosystems #SNSC2026

From our first #SNSC2026 keynote speaker Tom Bowser (Argaty Red Kites), we heard a story of resilience from the first site to reintroduce #beavers to a working Stirlingshire farm, overcoming challenges to bring these ecosystem engineers back to the landscape, and highlighting the changes seen since.

Doors are open and posters are going up at #SNSC2026 Day 1 kicks off with a warm welcome and message of hope and resilience from Professor Colin Galbraith from @naturescot.bsky.social, followed by a reflection of SNSCs past from University of Stirling’s Professor Kirsty Park (@stir.ac.uk)

We are getting ready for #SNSC2026 Scotland's Nature Student Conference - welcome and arrival tomorrow at the Pathfoot Building, University of Stirling, from 10am! View the programme on our website: scotnsconference.wixsite.com/2026 We look forward to welcoming you to our event!