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Headlines from week beginning 25 February 2019 |
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A round up of the top countryside, conservation, wildlife and forestry stories as chosen by the CJS Team.
Mammalian carnivores stage a comeback in Britain
– Vincent Wildlife Trust A new paper assessing the changing fortunes of Britain’s native
mammalian carnivores has been published in the journal Mammal Review,
led by VWT PhD student Katie Sainsbury. Katie is completing her PhD
focusing on polecat recovery at the University of Exeter, with VWT and
the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH).
For the study, Katie and other researchers from VWT, University of
Exeter, CEH, and Scottish Natural Heritage, collected and reviewed
survey reports from the last 40 years and compared changes in the
distribution extent and population sizes of Britain’s mammalian
carnivores. They also reviewed human activities that have helped or
hindered native carnivores in recent decades. The study found that once-endangered species such as otters, polecats
and pine martens have staged a comeback in recent decades and overall,
the status of Britain’s native mammalian carnivores (badger, fox, otter,
pine marten, polecat, stoat and weasel) has markedly improved since the
1960s. The only exception is the wildcat, which is now restricted to
small numbers in isolated parts of the Scottish Highlands. Hunting, trapping, control by gamekeepers, use of toxic chemicals and
destruction of habitats contributed to the decline of most predatory
mammals in the 19th and early 20th Centuries. However, most of these
species have now largely recovered by themselves, as harmful human
activities have been stopped or reduced. Otters have almost completely recolonised Britain and badger
populations have roughly doubled since the 1980s. Polecats have expanded
across southern Britain from Wales, and pine martens have expanded from
the Scottish Highlands and are now re-establishing in Wales and northern
England. Fox numbers have risen since the 1960s, although have declined
in the last decade. The status of stoats and weasels remains obscure. Read the paper: Sainsbury, K. A.,
Shore, R. F.. Schofield, H., Croose, E., Campbell, R. D. & Mcdonald, R.
A.
Recent history, current status, conservation and management of native
mammalian carnivore species in Great Britain (Open access) Mammal
Review DOI: 10.1111/mam.12150
Pharmaceutical residues in fresh water pose a growing environmental risk
– Radboud University Over the past 20 years, concentrations of pharmaceuticals have
increased in freshwater sources all over the world, as research by
environmental experts at Radboud University has revealed. Levels of the
antibiotic ciprofloxacin have reached the point of potentially causing
damaging ecological effects. The research is the first to examine the
risks of two particular medicines in global freshwater sources, and is
being published in Environmental Research Letters on 22 February. “The
study calls for more widespread data gathering to measure the problem
around the world.”
“Getting an accurate picture of the environmental risks of
pharmaceuticals around the world depends on the availability of data,
which is limited,” says Rik Oldenkamp, lead author of the article. “It's
true that there are models, such as the ePiE model, which can give
detailed predictions of pharmaceutical concentrations in the
environment, but these are often only applicable to places where we
already have a lot of information, such as rivers in Europe.” The new model developed by the researchers, which builds on an
existing model with a lower resolution, makes it possible to come up
with worldwide predictions for individual ecoregions. Damaging concentrations For the two pharmaceuticals investigated in the study –
carbamazepine, an anti-epileptic drug, and ciprofloxacin, an antibiotic
– the environmental risks were found to be 10 to 20 times higher in 2015
than in 1995. The increased human use of ciprofloxacin was found to have
a particularly high impact globally. “The concentrations of this antibiotic can be harmful for bacteria in
the water, and these bacteria in turn play an important role in various
nutrient cycles,” says Oldenkamp. “Antibiotics can also have a negative
impact on the effectiveness of bacteria colonies used in wastewater
treatment.”
University leads first UK-wide assessment of changes in plankton
community – University of Plymouth A study led by Dr Abigail McQuatters-Gollop used an 11-year
time-series of data to create a snapshot of plankton communities Scientists have completed the first ever assessment of how plankton
communities are changing in coastal waters and shelf seas around the UK. Using an 11 year time-series of data, the findings create a snapshot
of how plankton communities have changed and shows that the patterns of
change differ spatially in UK waters. Writing in the Ecological Indicators journal, researchers say the
study offers an important preliminary insight into the status of the
plankton, which play a pivotal role in the health of our seas. The study was conducted by a network of world-leading scientific
institutions and government bodies, led by the University of Plymouth,
and also including: Plymouth Marine Laboratory; National Museum of
Natural History, France; Environment Agency; Marine Scotland Science;
National Oceanography Centre; Centre for Environment, Fisheries and
Aquaculture Science; Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS); The
Marine Biological Association; Agri-Food & Biosciences Institute;
Trinity College Dublin. The full study –
Plankton
lifeforms as a biodiversity indicator for regional-scale assessment of
pelagic habitats for policy by McQuatters-Gollop et al – is
published in Ecological Indicators, DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2019.02.010.
Strengthened protections for Isles of Scilly seabirds
- Natural England / defra Natural England announces plans to extend Isles of Scilly Special
Protection Area by almost 13,000 hectares.
Home to a greater diversity of breeding seabirds than anywhere else
in England, the existing
Isles of Scilly
Special Protection Area (SPA) supports over 8,000 pairs of 13
different seabird species – including the European storm petrel and
lesser black-backed gull - and is one of only two places in England
where Manx shearwaters breed.
Natural England has
outlined plans to extend the SPA by almost 13,000 hectares, helping
maintain healthy and productive breeding colonies for generations to
come. The extended boundary now recognises the importance of additional
species for the first time, including the European shag and great
black-backed gull, and includes not only seabird nesting sites but also
nearby sea areas used for feeding, resting, preening and other social
interactions. Isles of Scilly Special Protection Area extension: comment on
proposals Natural England is seeking views on the proposal to extend the Isles
of Scilly Special Protection Area (SPA) to protect important birds. This consultation closes at 11:45pm on 21 May 2019
Understanding the rich social lives of animals benefits international
conservation efforts - University of Exeter
and University of St Andrews An international group of researchers working on a wide range of
species, from elephants and crows, to whales and chimpanzees, argues
that animals’ cultural knowledge needs to be taken into consideration
when planning international conservation efforts. A paper to be published in leading journal Science makes a compelling
case that growing scientific evidence on social learning across a wide
range of species, which can lead to unique animal cultures, is important
for both conservation practice and conservation policy. Insights into animal cultures can provide valuable information on
‘what’ groups of animals to conserve, and on ‘how’ best to conserve
them. For example, understanding how grandmother killer whales pass on
valuable information to their offspring, or why some groups of
chimpanzees have a culture of cracking nutritious nuts with stone tools
while others do not, can be key to evaluating conservation challenges
for such species.
To protect ‘social capital’, some populations may be best delineated
by their cultural behaviour, rather than using the traditional approach
of assessing genetic diversity or the degree of geographic isolation.
Moreover, for some species, protecting individuals that act as
‘repositories’ of social knowledge, such as experienced elephant
matriarchs, may be just as important as conserving critical habitat. “Beyond genes, knowledge is also an important currency for wildlife.
As well as conserving genetic diversity, we must work towards
maintaining cultural diversity within animal populations, as a reservoir
for resilience and adaptation. This is an important reframing of our
understanding of the natural world, which will necessitate changes in
international wildlife law,” said the lead author of the paper, Philippa
Brakes, from the University of Exeter, UK. “Wool is the most sustainable fibre on earth”. That is the key
message the National Sheep Association (NSA) has for the National Trust
in its search for a more sustainable garment for staff and members to
replace its current reliance on synthetic materials. NSA is building on its promotion of the benefits of wool as a natural
fibre by encouraging the National Trust to use wool as its new fleece or
alternative garment materials. It is further reemphasising the animal
welfare reasons behind shearing following suggestions from ‘animal
rights’ groups that shearing sheep is cruel. NSA has written to
the National Trust encouraging it to consider wool as a viable product
for its fleeces, promoting wool as a renewable, natural and reliable
British product. NSA Chief Executive Phil Stocker comments: “The vast majority of
sheep in the UK are extensively grazed on grass that grows on little
more than sunshine, rain and soil nutrients. In doing so grassland soils
sequester carbon and help combat global warming. I would argue that wool
is the most sustainable fibre on earth and that it is the ultimate in
renewable technology. It seems ironic that we call that garment – the
fleece – after a sheep fleece yet most ‘fleeces’ are manufactured from
plastic materials and when washed contribute to polluting our oceans and
environment. The truth is that British wool has largely become a
by-product from sheep farming. Although there are specialist wool
producers that buck the trend, most of the wool is shorn in the early
summer to improve the welfare of the sheep and to prevent flies laying
their eggs within the fleece and causing serious welfare problems. Wool
grows back naturally and by the winter the sheep has a well-insulated
and protective weather proof coat. It seems to me that the
interests and philosophy of the National Trust align perfectly with the
properties of British wool and I’d challenge the Trust to either choose
wool or invest in wool based garment development that could contribute
significantly to the sustainability agenda.”
Protected great crested newt populations expand due to under-road
tunnels Habitat loss and fragmentation due to urbanisation and road
developments have considerable negative impacts on amphibian
populations. However, little research has examined the effectiveness of
amphibian mitigation road tunnels. In this unique study we used
specially adapted time-lapse recording cameras and a custom image
analysis script to monitor the amphibian usage and effectiveness of
tunnels at a site in northern England over 4 years. We monitored four amphibian species, including the European protected
great crested newt (Triturus cristatus). Our results show that
most amphibians entering tunnels successfully used them to move between
the different parts of the site separated by the road. The local
population of newts increased rapidly over the 4-year study period,
suggesting that the provision of tunnels, along with suitable pond and
terrestrial habitats, have successfully promoted population growth. We
found that newts mainly used tunnels in the autumn, rather than the
spring, by both adults and juveniles for dispersal. This indicates it is
extremely important that road tunnels connect suitable pond habitats on
both sides of the road as opposed to terrestrial habitat on one side and
aquatic habitat on the other side. To see the full paper click here
New international report sets out how Scottish wildcats can be saved
from extinction
– Scottish Wildcat Action
The report, published today, reviews all evidence collected and
concludes there is no longer a viable wildcat population living wild in
Scotland. (image: Scottish Wildcat Action) The wildcat – also known as the Highland tiger – is one of the UK’s
most endangered mammals. Previous studies have cited hybridisation – the
breeding of domestic pet and feral cats with wildcats – as the major
threat to their survival in the wild. It is thought hybridisation began
to affect the wildcat severely between the 1950s and 1980s, with limited
food sources and persecution resulting in the few remaining wildcats
breeding with domestic cats. Cabinet Secretary for the Environment, Climate Change and Land
Reform, Roseanna Cunningham, today (27 February 2019) welcomes the
publication of the report at the Royal Zoological Society of
Scotland’s Highland Wildlife Park, near Aviemore. “This report presents
us with further evidence of the serious challenges that wildcat
conservation faces in Scotland. The wildcat is an iconic Scottish
species and, as such, I will consider every possible action the Scottish
Government can take to save it, including an increased focus on captive
breeding and reinforcement of the Scottish population with wildcats from
elsewhere. We have in place a partnership of scientists and specialists
with the knowledge and expertise to give us the best chance of restoring
the Highland Tiger as a distinctive and charismatic species in the
Scottish countryside, and I look forward to working with them to make
this a reality.” The full report is available
here
Nearly two thousand locations across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
breaching air pollution limits
– Friends of the Earth A data audit by Friends of the Earth has revealed the 1,758 sites
across the UK that have breached the annual Air Quality Objective for
Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) levels, which is set to protect health. High levels of NO2 can cause a flare up of asthma or symptoms such as
coughing and difficulty breathing. A leading cause of NO2 pollution is
emissions from road traffic. With toxic air above limits affecting huge swathes of the UK, Friends
of the Earth is campaigning for Clean Air Zones to be rolled out in far
more places than are currently being planned, supported by measures such
as improved infrastructure to support safe cycling and walking. This
would see fewer polluting vehicles on our roads and would ultimately
improve public health. Removing such vehicles would also contribute to
reducing carbon emissions and fighting climate change.
National Trust response to Marsden Moor fire
- National Trust After working closely with the emergency services through the night
and into the day of the 26 and 27 February, National Trust rangers,
volunteers and partner organisations will shortly begin to assess the
impact of the devastation and take the first steps to help the landscape
and wildlife to recover. The area affected covers approximately three
square kilometres. “We would like to thank the West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue services
(WYFRS) for working so quickly together with our team of 10 staff and
volunteers who have worked tirelessly to contain the fire as much as
possible” said Mike Innerdale, Regional Director for the National Trust
in the North of England. “The land does remain at risk of
re-ignition and the WYFRS are continuing to monitor the situation with
specialist crew”. Craig Best countryside manager for the National Trust in West
Yorkshire said: “The area affected was primarily molinia dominated
grassland (tussocky grass) (including sphagnum and cotton grass). We are
getting close to the time of year when moorland fires can occur and
cause most damage. Dry and hot weather makes the peat more flammable and
moors more combustible. If it’s windy, it can spread very
quickly." Marsden Moor is a special place for upland birds, including merlin,
which nest on the ground. It’s likely that the biggest loss of
wildlife will be nesting birds such as curlew and mountain hares that
inhabit this area of the moorland.
Northumberland-born hen harrier vanishes
- Northumberland National Park A young male hen harrier from Northumberland has disappeared in
suspicious circumstances in Wiltshire, south west England.
The harrier, named Vulcan, was one of 11 chicks to fledge from nests
in Northumberland last summer, which were being protected by the
Northumberland Hen Harrier Protection Partnership. He was fitted with a
satellite tag as part of the RSPB’s EU-funded Hen Harrier LIFE project,
which enabled the nature conservation charity to track his movements. Vulcan is the second satellite-tagged hen harrier from Northumberland
to disappear since last summer. In August 2018, female hen harrier
Athena vanished in suspicious circumstances in Inverness-shire. Vulcan was tracked by the RSPB moving from Northumberland down to the
Peak District where he remained throughout September. He then continued
to head further south through Hampshire and Dorset. On 16 January 2019,
Vulcan’s tag sent out its final transmission, from a location south of
the village of Calstone Wellington, in Wiltshire. RSPB Investigations staff searched the area, which is farmland and
heavily managed for pheasant and partridge shooting, but there was no
sign of Vulcan or his tag. He has not been heard from since and the
matter was reported to Wiltshire Police. An ambitious new initiative aims to pioneer new ways of funding
nature conservation in Scotland through the launch of the £1 Billion
Challenge. Led by the Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Scottish Environment
Protection Agency (SEPA), the Scottish Conservation Finance Project aims
to generate new forms of investment in Scotland’s stocks of natural
capital in ways that will deliver significant environmental, social and
economic benefits, as well as returns for investors. The project brings together a dynamic mix of organisations from the
private, public and non-profit sectors to develop cutting-edge
investment and funding models for large-scale nature conservation
activities, for example planting native woodlands, restoring oyster
reefs and creating urban green spaces.
New for newts: better for wildlife, business and people
- Natural England An innovative approach by Natural England to protect great crested
newts and encourage sustainable development was today (28 February)
launched in Kent. Developers in Kent can now apply for a licence under District Level
Licensing (DLL) for great crested newts (GCN). It follows our
announcement of a
nationwide roll-out of great crested newt District Level Licensing
in 2017. GCNs are widely distributed throughout lowland England. However the
species has suffered enormous declines, with approximately 50% of ponds
in the UK lost in the 20th Century and 80% of current ponds in a poor
state. The current licensing system is focused on management to prevent
harm on individual development sites rather than addressing the wider
health of GCN populations. Our new approach seeks to redress this
balance, encouraging targeted efforts towards provision of GCN habitat
in areas where surveys show it will most effectively connect and expand
GCN populations. This new approach will increase GCN populations at a county level. It
will also reduce delays for developers. Under the current licensing
approach, developers who want to build on land which is home to GCNs
need to trap and relocate the species before starting work. Seasonal
restrictions, where these are not effectively planned for, can lead
delays and create uncertainty over the costs and scheduling of planned
development. Through the District Level Licensing scheme in Kent, developers no
longer need to do this. Instead developers can make a conservation
payment which will cover creating or restoring ponds in areas away from
the development. These areas, mapped by Natural England, represent the
best places for newts to thrive and habitat created here will be
maintained and monitored for 25 years, all funded by developers. As well as being good for GCN, it is estimated that District Level
Licensing will reduce delays and costs for developers and regulators
across England, saving hundreds of millions of pounds. For information about the Great crested newts: district level licensing schemes access the Guidance from Natural England Click here.
Bags of Help for many paths well travelled -
Greenspace Scotland Many places throughout Scotland have become more accessible to the
public thanks to investment from Bags of Help. Since early 2017 many
miles of pathways have opened routes to discovery in and around cities,
towns, villages and in the countryside encouraging people to get
outdoors and enjoy the environment. All ages and abilities have been catered for with projects organised
by a diverse range of groups including residents’ associations,
community councils and development trusts, walking and sports groups,
over 50’s, parent councils, schools and nurseries. Footpaths, cycleways,
wheelchair and buggy access, including accessible toilets, have been
created. Upgrades and maintenance have also been undertaken to help all
in the community benefit from sports clubs, community buildings and
gardens, parks, rural environments and wildlife. Aims of the pathway and access awardees are to link areas, increase
awareness of active travel, open gateways to and learning in the
environment. Projects tackled improvements for safety, fitness and
access for all alongside installations of signage and artworks adding
value to the routes. Interpretive paths offer opportunities to learn
about nature, the arts and heritage and some of the pathways have been
in unusual locations, such as through the graveyard Glasgow Necropolis. Click through for sample access projects and links to case studies.
Scientific Publications A. J. Jamieson, L. S. R. Brooks, W. D. K. Reid, S. B. Piertney, B. E. Narayanaswamy and T. D. Linley Microplastics and synthetic particles ingested by deep-sea amphipods in six of the deepest marine ecosystems on Earth (open access) Royal Society Open Science https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.180667
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CJS is not responsible for content of external sites. Details believed correct but given without prejudice. Disclaimer: the views expressed in these news pages do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of CJS. |
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Polecats
and pine martens are recolonising parts of Britain, having become very
rare at the turn of the 20th century © Anne Newton / Robert Cruickshanks
Lesser
black-backed gull. (Credit: Natural England)
Young
chimpanzee watching nut cracking behaviour. (Credit: Tetsuro Matsuzawa
Primate Research Institute, Kyoto)
lans
for the essential next steps to give the wildcat a sustainable future
are underway, following a report by members of The International Union
for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s Cat Specialist Group.
Hen
Harrier Vulcan - photo by RSPB
