Phil Golder

Phil Golder has been a nature lover since being a member of the YOC in his school years. He has worked and volunteered in conservation and ecology since 2008, with organisations such as the RSPB, including with RSPB Conservation Science, the James Hutton Institute, The Conservation Volunteers, the University of Highlands and Islands, Forestry and Land Scotland and the John Muir Trust, and as a professional surveyor since 2012.

Phil has extensive knowledge of survey methodologies, through work on the Native Woodland survey of Scotland (NWSS) and multiple projects with RSPB Conservation Science, and has contributed to a number of publications, scientific or otherwise. He has experience with species conservation from time with the Cornish Chough project; red-backed shrikes on Dartmoor; hen harriers, including diversionary feeding, at Langhom; and numerous capercaillie surveys and related projects. He has been involved in small and large scale Land management studies include comparisons with burning, cutting, fencing and cattle inside and outside of woodlands.

He worked in the IT industry as a technical consultant for 13 years, managing hardware and software installations and monitoring systems in many well known organisations, and he also worked as an accountant after university.

In 2019 he became joint owner and director of an incredibly successful health shop in Exmouth, Devon.

Publication record:

- Hancock, M.H., Gullett, P.R., Golder, P., Marshall, G., Cowie, N.R. 2023. Emulating natural disturbances with trial management in Scotland: effects of burning, mowing and cattle on habitat measures important for capercaillie Tetrao urogallus. European Journal of Forest Research. 142. 1-17. 10.1007/s10342-023-01544-1.

- Summers, R.W.., Golder, P., Wallace, N., Munro, E., Wilson, J.D. 2022. Association between the distribution of Capercaillies Tetrao urogallus and road and track densities at a landscape scale in a national park. Bird Study. 69. 1-11. 10.1080/00063657.2022.2141683.

- Summers R.W., Golder P., Wallace N., Iason G. & Wilson J.D. 2015. Correlates of Capercaillie productivity in Scots pinewoods in Strathspey. Scottish Natural Heritage Commissioned Report No. 742.

Papers acknowledging his fieldwork:

- Wilkinson, N. I., Eaton, M. A., Marshall, G., Haysom, S. 2018 ‘The population status of Capercaillie Tetrao urogallus in Scotland during winter 2015–16’, Bird Study, 65(1), pp. 20–35. doi: 10.1080/00063657.2018.1439448.