Primary 6 were out in the school grounds last week, taking part in the OPAL Science Air Survey to try and find out about how polluted the air is in Pollokshields, as part of our Eco Schools work on the Climate Action topic.

There are two parts to this survey. One involves searching for particular types of Lichens growing on trees and the other part is about finding proof of Tar Spot fungus on Sycamore leaves.  This starts to appear in late spring. Research suggests that the Tar Spot fungus does not thrive where pollution levels are high, so it could be a useful bioindicator. Biological indicators (or ‘bioindicators’) are species whose presence or performance is sensitive to changes in environmental conditions, and which can therefore be used as indicators of air quality.

The Lichen survey is concerned with  pollutants containing nitrogen. These include
ammonia and oxides of nitrogen (nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide). The burning of fossil fuels associated with industrial processes and transport produces large amounts of oxides of nitrogen and microscopic particles. Large urban areas and places close to busy roads have the highest concentrations of nitrogen dioxide. Lichens have long been known to be sensitive indicators of air quality. They were used in the past to map areas affected by sulphur dioxide pollution from industrial and domestic sources. Today, lichens occur widely in our towns, cities and countryside, on a diverse range of surfaces from concrete pavements to park and woodland trees.  The highest ammonia concentrations are found in the countryside. Ammonia is particularly associated with agriculture. Levels of
ammonia may be high in areas of arable farming, where fertilisers are used to
improve the growth of crops, and in areas of livestock farming.

The pupils had to look for lichens at a height of 50-150cm above ground level. They had to grade and record the amount of lichens seen on a particular tree on a scale of 0-3 where 3 represents a large amount of lichen. They then used an identification guide , the Seek and iNaturalist apps to identify any species they found. You can see them in action in the photos below as well as the lichens that were spotted.

They examined a sample of 4 trees, and found evidence of crusty lichens only on three of them. These are not included in the survey. On one tree they found Parmelia. This is an intermediate species which can be found in both clean and polluted areas. We found no evidence of Tar Spot fungus in the survey. This was worrying as this has been seen in large amounts in our school grounds before and this could indicate an increase in air pollution around our school.

We would like to repeat the survey later in the year, using a different area of the grounds at the St. Andrew’s Drive side of our grounds to see if we can find any other bioindicator lichens to get a bigger picture of the state of air quality around our school.

Every year, as part of our Eco School’s work,  St. Albert’s Primary takes part in the world’s largest wildlife survey, the RSPB’s Schools Birdwatch in January. This year was no exception and Primary 5/6 and members of the Eco Committee spent an hour recording the different birds in our school grounds.  This serves to help scientists to monitor survival of birds across Britain in the face of the climate crisis.

Pupils put bird seed out into the upper school yard to attract birds and waited patiently for them to arrive. Using binoculars, the pupils identified and recorded the maximum number of each type of bird that landed in the grounds at the one time so there were no duplicate birds who fly away and then return being recorded. We saw 2 Blackbirds, 6 Black-headed gulls, 1 Blue tit, 4 Carrion Crows, 5 Coal tits, 2 Magpies, 3 Robins, 1 Song Thrush, 10 Starlings, 4 Woodpigeons and 2 Wrens. This information was uploaded to the RSPB website to make our results count. Here you can see the pictures from the event.

Today Primary 6 went into the upper school playground to carry out a survey of the type of insects that live in our school grounds. They worked in groups to survey soft ground surfaces, hard man-made surfaces and on plants and trees and recorded what they saw in tally charts. They used magnifiers to help them see the bugs up close and used the Seek  and iNaturalist apps to help them identify any unfamiliar bugs.  We undertake this survey every year to check which species are surviving in our grounds and also to find if there are any new invasive species appearing due to them moving into our country from warmer countries now that our climate is also becoming warmer.

The pupils found a Two Spotted Ladybird on a wall and we were delighted to see this creature again this year as the non-native Harlequin Ladybird is now causing it to decline in  numbers.  We did not see any Green Shield bugs this year for the first time. These used to be found in Southern England but are moving northwards, but we did see another type of Shield Bug that we had never seen before in our surveys. We think it may be a Forest Bug but we are waiting to see what the iNaturalist community makes of it. There is a picture of it below. We also identified different types of bees in our Eco garden where they frequent the wildflower beds looking for nectar, including a Red tailed bumble bee and an Early Bumble Bee.  We also found slugs, woodlice, spiders, aphids, thrips, a huge black beetle, a snail, ants and flies, but not one earthworm, no doubt due to the ground being so dry. Here are some pictures from the survey:

As part of our Eco School’s work the Eco Committee ran an Effects of  Climate Change poster competition for the P4-7 classes. The task was to design a poster to show the effects of climate change on either wildlife or the poorer nations of the world. The standards were high and judging was difficult, but in the end three winners were chosen. They were Hannah Ahmed of Primary 4 and  from Primary 6, Wael Salah and Abdur-Rehman Ahmed, who were awarded prizes at the morning assembly.  You can see them and their posters in the photos below.