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News
VCR and Assistant VCR vacancies in Scotland We are looking for keen, fit and reasonably competent botanists to fill a number of existing and forthcoming Vice-county Recorder vacancies, which will arise when the present recorders retire. The current vacancies are for VC83 (Midlothian) and VC85 (Fife). Further information on the vice-counties and details of how to apply can be downloaded here. The closing date for applications is March 1st 2010. We are also looking for VCR assistants to help VCRs computerise their botanical records. Currently the VCs of Angus, the Lothians, Mid-Ebudes (Mull, Tiree & Coll) and Peebles require assistance. Full details of what is required of the applicant and how to apply can be downloaded here. The closing date for applications is March 1st 2010. Elaine Bullard retires as Orkney VCR Elaine Bullard has retired from her official role as Orkney's BSBI Vice-County Recorder at the remarkable age of 93. She was appointed as VCR for Orkney in 1963, some 46 years ago. In that time she has contributed greatly to the knowledge of Orkney's plants and habitats, gathering information from all over the isles. Elaine undertook valuable early work on Scottish Primrose with the Orkney Field Club and made an important contribution on plants and vegetation in 'The Natural History of Orkney' by R. J. Berry. Her checklist of the flowering plants and ferns of Orkney, first published in 1972, is still an essential reference for anyone interested in the Orcadian flora. For many years she was a determined campaigner for a biological records centre for Orkney, a one-stop shop where all the data could be safely stored and readily accesses for the benefit of all, and in this she has been successful, with the eventual founding of the Orkney Biodiversity Records Centre. Elaine's contribution to Orkney botany has been widely recognised - both locally and further afield. She was awarded an MBE in 1981 for services rendered to nature conservation in Orkney. In 2007 Heriot-Watt University awarded her an honorary doctorate in recognition of her contribution to botany. Darwin Exhibition at Elgin Museum As part of the 2009 Darwin anniversairies, Elgin Museum will be putting on display six original letters from Charles Darwin. The letters relate to Darwin's search for three orchids he needed for his study leading to the publication of the first edition in 1862 of The Various Contrivances by which Orchids are Fertilised by Insects. Also on display are a couple of related letters from Watson, photos of the orchids in question and a copy of Darwin's orchid book. The Museum holds several collections of pressed plants, dating from the 1830s, as well as various fossil plants. As an independent museum, a small entry charge has to be made, but a visit to the Museum, in its Grade A listed building, with award winning collections of Pictish stones, fossil fish and reptiles, and other tales of Moray and beyond, is unlikely to disappoint. Elgin Museum: 1 High Street, Elgin, Moray, IV30 1EQ
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