Historically, there has been one golden rule when it comes to the great outdoors, that is, to leave no trace.
Most of the time, when we venture out into the wilderness, we will take appropriate measures to ensure that rubbish is properly disposed of, that habitats are undisturbed, and that the area is left exactly how we found it.
In recent times, however, things have changed. As the Instagram and social media stronghold has seeped into nearly every aspect of our lives, there's become a growing trend of leaving some kind of trace and posting a picture to prove it happened.
Read more: Is the government doing enough to tackle climate change?
One picture trend that sums this up most appropriately is the trend of stone stacking.
Sometimes called cairns, the history of stone stacking in ancient Wales is rich and varied , and such structures have been linked to spiritual pre-Christian religions, tribes and ceremonies.
Today, though, the widespread scale of creative stone stacking has started to have a negative impact on the environment.
In earthy areas such as woodlands, stones play an essential role in preventing soil erosion, and when the rocks are stacked up in all sorts of wild shapes, the soil (unsurprisingly) erodes.
Madison Bowden-Parry, an employee of the The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, said: "Rocks create microhabitats for a variety of animals like amphibians, insects and reptiles, and when rocks are stacked, homes, habitats, nurseries are removed. In riparian zones and freshwater ecosystems, pried loose rocks can even promote erosion."
Madison pointed out rock stacking is becoming more and more frequent around Wales, and that there simply isn't enough awareness on the damage it causes to local ecosystems and habitats.
On Instagram, a quick search of the ‘rock stacking’ hashtag will pull up roughly 100,000 posts, and stone stacking a further 41,000 posts.
While it might seem like harmless fun, in coastal areas, stone stacking has also been known to damage the nests of oystercatchers - a bird species that typically makes and camouflages its nest on a stony shore.
Abertillery local Hayley Murphy, 31, discovered an abundance of stacked rocks when walking the Four Waterfalls Walk in Ystradfellte, and she posted a video of the stacks to a popular walking group on Facebook to find out more information on what they meant.
"I posted the video to the group to find out what they were - I expected some sort of symbolic explanation or something. It was quite spectacular to see, unknowing the harmful impact they are creating," she said.
Other members in the group quickly commented on the post, pointing out the damaging impacts of stone stacking.
Comments were divided - while some termed the act 'environmental vandalism', others defended stone stacking as a meditative hobby that's particularly good for children.
Hayley added: "The comments on the post were on the whole really insightful, and it's good to see people raising awareness on such an important issue that's often overlooked."
Have you noticed an increase in rock stacks around Wales? Let us know in the comments:
