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On the Beaten Track

We are often told to get off the beaten track to get a more authentic natural experience, but for nature watching you may find that paths are your best option.
A path with Bluebells at Hairpin Woodland Park

Footpaths can be seen as intrusions into a wild space, a necessary  evil built for human enjoyment. But the humble footpath is just a form of a game trail, and instead of deer or horses, the medium sized mammals using the trail are Homo sapiens. Game trails are one of nature's fundamental arteries, linking together landscapes through the regular movement of mammals that transport an array of biodiversity (seeds, spores and eggs) on feet and fur. This movement allows biodiversity to colonise new areas or recolonise  after disturbances such as fires and storms. 

Wall brown butterfly feeding on Knapweed

Where medium sized animals create paths, smaller animals recognise these features. Dragonflies and butterflies will patrol and set up territories along paths and birds will often nest alongside paths. Small mammals use them at night. Wildflowers like primroses will often be outcompeted by thuggish plants like bramble and bracken away from a path, but find a safe area in the semi-trodden parts of the path edges. Where feet wear away path edges on slopes, exposed soil allows for species like mining bees to make nests and for cold blooded species to bask. 

humans have been creating and using game trails since we first evolved, it's in our DNA to be attracted to them. Using trails gets us close to nature and gets us close to our natural self, and when we use them mindfully we will realise that the path is the destination. 

When people and dogs walk, their paths create a localised deterrent, keeping away many smaller predators and small herbivores but giving refuge for some plants and animals long after the canine has passed.  

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