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© Lucy Lush 2009

In this issue: the darcy lever gravel pits the fifth otter survey in england biological surveys of potential local nature reserves in

Bolton learning from your mistakes part 2 international year of biodiversity amphibian & reptile discovery project

W elcome to the second edition of the Greater

M a n c h e s t e r B i o d i v e r s i t y newsletter. The Greater Manchester

Biodiversity e-Newsletter provides the opportunity to

find out, and inform people within the partnership,

about projects and events that are going on across

Greater Manchester. So if you have any news that

you would like to include in the next issue please

email me at lucy.lush@tameside.gov.uk.

C o n t e n t s

2

Introduction

I n t e r n a t i o n a l Ye a r o f B i o d i v e r s i t y 2 0 1 0

Many of you may be aware that 2010 is the

International Year of Biodiversity and there are

numerous events being organised across the UK to

celebrate it. The Greater Manchester Biodiversity

Project has signed up as a partner of the IYB-UK

and can therefore utilise the logo and

communications to advertise any events happening

across Greater Manchester. The North West

Biodiversity Forum is also creating a calendar of

events to help promote activities.

So if you are planning an event specifically for IYB,

or would like to promote an existing event for

biodiversity then please send me the details

(lucy.lush@tameside.gov.uk).

For further information about IYB please visit the

website: www.biodiversityislife.net

3 greater manchester biodiversity project update 4 fifth otter survey of england 6 making a difference: darcy lever gravel pits 8 conservation volunteers helping water voles 10 biological surveys of potential bolton local nature reserves 14 learning by your mistakes: tree felling 16 wildlife trust ploughs on mossland restoration 18 the amphibian & reptile discovery project 20 area update

N E W S

3

FUTURE PROJECTS 2010

ALSF Quarries Action Plan

Greater Manchester Ecology Unit has been

awarded £25,000 to carry out ecological, and with

the help of Greater Manchester Geology Unit,

geological surveys of 11 disused quarries across

Greater Manchester, to assess the biodiversity and

geological interest. This will be used to create an

action plan for best practice management of

quarries to benefit biodiversity and geodiversity.

Surveying will begin early 2010 with best practice

guidance for quarry operators and a Quarries Action

Plan being made available by March 2011.

North West Brown Hare Project

An application has been submitted to SITA Trust

Enriching Nature and People’s Trust for

Endangered Species mammal fund to appoint a

project officer to collate current data and survey for

brown hare across the areas of Bolton, Bury, Wigan

in Greater Manchester, across to St. Helen’s,

Knowsley and Sefton in North Merseyside and

South Lancashire. Volunteers will carry out the

surveys, with help from the RSPB’s V&FA

programme, and close liaison with FWAG and

Natural England to assist in environmental

stewardship applications to aid long-term

management for brown hare and farmland birds.

There are a wide range of project partners on board

that include the local authorities, Wildlife Trust for

Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside,

United Utilities, NFU, CLA and the Environment

Agency. The Tree Council has also awarded the

project £3,200 to plant hedgerows and hedge trees

within the project area. The project is due to start in

March 2010, subject to funding, and will initially be a

2-year project.

North West Regional Ponds Project

The five North West Biodiversity Partnerships along

with Pond Conservation plan to carry out an

Important Area for Ponds (IAP) analysis of the North

West. This will utilise existing pond survey data and

associated species and will help to highlight areas

to focus efforts. It is important that any pond related

data that you have is sent to your local record

centre to ensure that it is incorporated into the

analysis.

Calling all local wildlife groups!

The Greater Manchester Biodiversity Project is keen

to engage with local wildlife groups. Therefore, in

the next issue there will be a section for local groups

to ‘air their views’, so if you would like to inform

people about any interesting projects you are

working on, or events you are holding then email me

the details lucy.lush@tameside.gov.uk.

UPDATED BIODIVERSITY ACTION

PLANS……..NOW ONLINE AT

w w w . g m b p . o r g . u k

Greater Manchester Biodiversity Project Update

The Fifth Otter Survey of England

L ate last Summer the

Environment Agency, Wildlife

Trusts, local authority ecologists and

experienced volunteers joined

forces for the 5th Otter Survey of

England.

It was the first national otter survey since 2002 and

the results were very encouraging. Otter evidence

was discovered on the River Bollin near Wilmslow

and the River Goyt near Marple Bridge.

Within the 50km2 OS grid square “SJ NE”, which

covers most of Cheshire and the southern part of

Greater Manchester,

48% of the 10 km2 squares

were confirmed as having

otter presence.

This is, of course, great news because the presence

of otters is an excellent indicator of the

environmental health of a river, reflecting good water

quality, suitable habitat conditions and a plentiful

food supply.

This has been a great example of effective

partnership working, without which a survey of this

scale could not have been completed. All the

volunteers will be acknowledged for their hard work

in the final report in Spring 2010.

The Environment Agency has invested a

considerable amount of effort, working with partners

and influencing developers and industry, to improve

river habitat and water quality. This will hopefully

continue with the production of the North West River

Basin Management Plan, as part of the Water

Framework Directive (WFD).

Elsewhere in Greater Manchester, the Environment

Agency have commissioned Bowland Ecology to

undertake a detailed assessment of the habitat

quality along the Irwell and Croal catchments, where

otters were found in 2008 following a 150-year

absence from North Manchester's rivers. The Irwell

and its tributaries are now showing significant

4

Copyright D. Cousins. Environment Agency

environmental improvements, with the return of

otters a key element in this. It is hoped such

environmental assessment and production of otter

habitat management plans will identify current

threats and opportunities for further otter habitat

expansion and consolidation within these

catchments. The surveys will also be invaluable in

deciding on appropriate management and aiding the

Environment Agency to achieve key biodiversity

targets.

Duncan Reve l l | Ga ry Mo r r i s

5

River Goyt, Otterspool

Making a Difference: The Darcy Lever Gravel Pits Bolton

V olunteers have made a

real difference to Darcy

Lever Gravel Pits helping it

become one of Bolton's best wildlife

sites. Over the last five years they

have created a mosaic of woodland,

wetland, grassland and heath which

provides important habitat for Great

Crested Newts and 17 species of

dragonfly.

Part of the Moses Gate Country Park Local Nature

Reserve, the site takes it's name from the sand and

gravel extractions which only 40 years ago laid the

site to waste. This brought sand, gravel and clay to

the surface and created an uneven terrain with

mounds, hollows and ponds. When the works

stopped after a few years the site was left to

naturally colonise.

G e t t i n g s t a r t e d

In 2004, local volunteers in partnership with Bolton

Council began working together to develop a project

to manage the site for wildlife and people. Restoring

ponds, creating paths, rides and glades. A

successful bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund secured

funds to improve paths and access points and

volunteers got stuck in to conservation projects.

The volunteers formed themselves into the Gravel

Pits Action Group (GPAG) which meets regularly

helping develop new projects, find funding, advise on

management and make a difference on the ground.

G r e a t N e w s

One of the major successes of the last five years has

been the dispersal of Great Crested Newts from one

breeding pond to nine. Work to create 16 new ponds

and open up others as a pond way was crucial in

achieving this.

It was important though, to get the balance right and

leave some ponds in their late succession state to

provide opportunities for specialist invertebrates.

Conservation work also tackled the newts' terrestrial

habitat, opening up some areas, creating rides and

glades. In many areas dead wood has

been stacked to form dead hedges and

provide refugia for newts. These works

have also benefited frog, toad, smooth

and palmate newt which are now

abundant on the site.

Dragonflies have also risen

from 9 species present in

2005 to 17 species across

the entire site in 2009.

Notable residents are the Ruddy Darter,

Black Darter and the Emerald Damselfly.

6 ©

Pond Conservation

7

Excavation January 07

Re-established pond May 2008

F r o m l i t t l e s e e d s

To improve biodiversity GPAG took an area of bare

ground misused by horse riders and created a new

heathland. Heather tops full of seed, cut from

management operations off-site were applied to the

bare ground. The area is now carpeted by young

heather plants. In other areas on site they cut back

shading scrub around heathland plants and created

bare ground to encourage natural colonisation. The

long term aim is for these fragments to connect

together to create a viable lowland heath.

G e t i n v o l v e d

Another success of the site has been how people

have got involved. Not just through GPAG but local

school children visiting the site to discover more

about the ponds and university students taking on

project work. The site is visited by local naturalists

and is used for informal recreation by walkers and

dog owners. The team worked closely with local

horse riders to meet their needs and encourage

responsible use of the site.

The highlight of the calendar is when the community

comes together each year on May Day at the Frog

Parade to celebrate the site and all it's wildlife and

the hard work of the volunteers who manage it and

make a difference!

Je f f G ibson | Vo lunteer Member o f GPAG

C o n s e r v a t i o n Volunteers Helping W a t e r V o l e s

G r e a t e r M a n c h e s t e r ’ s Mosslands have been identified as a key area

where the Northwest Lowlands Water Vole Project (NWLWVP) will focus efforts. Surveying and monitoring of populations

took place in 2008 and 2009 and will continue

throughout the project. However, in coming years

more emphasis will be placed on working with

landowners and securing positive management of

riparian habitat on their holdings.

8

Water vole surveys were carried out on New Moss,

near Cadishead, in 2008 and 2009. A small

population were identified on a short section of

ditch but no where else.

An assessment of the habitats

surveyed concluded that the colony

was limited by the abundance and

connectivity of favourable habitat.

The Woodland Trust own the site and as part of

their ongoing management plan for the site have

incorporated ditch maintenance and tree pollarding

work to increase the amount of habitat available to

the water voles.

To further strengthen the viability of the small

colony the NWLWVP commissioned BTCV to carry

out some habitat restoration work on a ditch near to

the colony. Firstly, a survey was carried out just to

make sure no water voles had moved in during the

autumn. Then it was decided how to restore the

habitat: by removing all the vegetation from one

bank side and leaving the other which is adjacent to

a well used footpath and dog walk.

Over two days in November volunteers sawed,

slashed and raked to great effect restoring potential

water vole habitat.

The NWLWVP will be

monitoring closely in the coming years to check if

any water voles have found this new habitat.

Link to Water vole Biodiversity Action Plan

Richard Gardner | Cheshire Wildlife Trust

Conservation Volunteers Helping Water Voles

9

before after

Biological Surveys of Potential Bolton Local Nature Reserves

2009 was an

incredib ly

busy year

for the wildlife trust in Bolton with an

ambitious project to aid Bolton Council in

designating new Local Nature Reserves.

LWT took on two voluntary placements as

part of the ‘V Impact’ scheme to

undertake ecological surveys of urban

green spaces that had no previous data.

The results they found provide a

snapshot of the amazing biodiversity that

can be found around the borough.

Initial investigations were carried out to find which

green spaces had the most to offer and from these a

shortlist was drawn up that included UKBAP priority

habitats such as upland heathland and wonderful

mosaic post industrial sites. Greater Manchester

BAP priority habitats were also included with acid,

neutral, and marshy grassland, broadleaved

woodland and a multitude of ponds all taking centre

stage.

Brownstones Quarry proved to be a

site many people are passionate about with a range

of habitats including upland heathland,

patches of willow scrub, two ponds, acid

grassland, wet/marshy grassland, and

the quarry face itself forming a very diverse mix.

Common frog and common toad were found in

the ponds along with smooth and palmate newt

and great numbers of newt larva. As a result of these

findings the volunteers, with the help of Bolton

Council, applied for funding from SITA Greenprints

to purchase plants which are beneficial to

amphibians’ egg laying. Young volunteers helped to

plant them, as well as other tasks such as

Himalayan balsam removal.

An extended phase one survey was carried out that

revealed the presence of species rich neutral

grassland which could be returned to acid grassland

and eleven species of butterfly were found, including

a small number of the currently declining Red

admiral and Small Tortoiseshell. Buzzards were

seen overhead and in the past peregrine falcons

have bred at the site proving it provides the right

conditions for birds of prey. The presence of the

10

Bolton Wildlife Trust

kestrels also highlights the need for a future small

mammal survey.

Ousels Nest Quarry, which along

with Upper Bradshaw Valley, Jumbles Reservoir,

Seven Acres LNR and Moses Gate Country Park

LNR forms part of Bradshaw Brooke valley. This

site again supported Common toad, Common frog

and Smooth newt and may possibly even support

Palmate newt. The water level in these ponds

fluctuates greatly with two of them drying out

completely for long periods. To alleviate this,

volunteers secured funding to remove willow scrub

and protect a small patch of heather by removing

over bearing bramble, as well as, improving access

to the site.

12 species of butterflies were present

with the Painted lady’s spectacular invasion being

represented. The results also show that the

Bradshaw Brooke corridor is fantastic for the

Meadow Brown butterfly with 347 being

counted at the three sites surveyed and 87 being

identified in a single day! With the exception of

Seven Acres LNR these results are only for one

year but should they be repeated in further surveys

over the next few years all three sites would be

suitable for SBI status.

Upper Bradshaw Valley (also

known as Ousels Nest Meadows) is another

spectacular site with the remains of an industrial

past being visible within a deciduous woodland. A

number of these trees are forest giants which have

witnessed the changes around them over hundreds

of years. Anecdotal evidence from users of the area

suggests that otters may be present so this is a

definite priority for future surveys.

Bridge Street is a little known woodland

oasis right at the heart of Horwich town centre

which provides the opportunity for people to enjoy

nature within seconds of leaving the hustle and

bustle of the shops. Butterfly results were

disappointing at this site with seven species, only

one of which was in double figures. Two woodland

glades allow the possibility of future management

however and a marshy grassland gives the site a

GMBAP habitat. Bat surveys indicate the presence

of both Common and Soprano pipistrelle feeding

over the site.

11

Moses Gate LNR Bolton Council

To survey Eagley Valley a local volunteer,

Ben Deed, was asked to do what he could in his

spare time to help improve the records. The result

was a thirty-four page epic which detailed every

aspect of the site from history to usage and wildlife.

Highlights again include the butterfly results which

indicate the presence of fifteen species.

Bat surveys identified four species Common and

Soprano pipistrelle, Daubentons, and

Whiskered/Brant. All species were

recorded feeding, meaning Eagley Valley matches

SBI designation criteria. Records show that areas

adjacent to the site have also been used by Brown

long-eared, Natterers and Noctule bats! Amphibian

results are again promising with Common frog and

toad both recorded and 45 adult Palmate newts recorded in a single survey night.

Several sites were also surveyed for water vole - a UKBAP priority species. The trust has been

managing Red Moss SSSI for the past fifteen years

and the presence of large numbers of water voles is

testament to the expertise employed in the

management of the site. Middle Brooke flows from

Red Moss right into the centre of Bolton through a

number of potential local nature reserves so surveys

targeted these areas.

Evidence of water voles were found downstream at

Deane Clough and whilst a survey wasn’t possible at

Mill Lane, it provides all the right conditions. LWT is

now hoping to use the expertise gained at Red Moss

to manage the whole Brooke for the benefit of this

under threat species.

The Bradshaw Brooke corridor provides excellent potential to return it to its original

acidic species rich grassland. Work has already

began at Seven Acres LNR for a number of years

and has resulted in meadows turned purple with

Devils-bit scabious and a profusion of Tormentil

much to the delight of both the local community and

wildlife with 17 butterfly species recorded in these

meadows this year.

The project also raised the awareness of a number

of disused quarry sites within the borough and a new

position has been created because of this. Natural

England through the Aggregates Levy Sustainability

Fund have agreed to support a four month post to

undertake practical work on the Quarries and deliver

education sessions. In the future, work on these

12

Bolton News

sites will tie in with GMEU’s developing action plan

on quarries in Greater Manchester.

This ambitious project eventually worked with

nearly one hundred volunteers and not only

surveyed wildlife to provide a snapshot of the

borough and inform management plans but also

gained funding for practical works which would

simply have not happened without the volunteers.

LWT is proud to support and facilitate the excellent

work of volunteers within Bolton and would like to

thank everyone who has helped to make this

ambitious project a reality.

Stephen Cartwright | Local Nature Reserve Assistant Project Officer

Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North

Merseyside

13

Bolton Wildlife Trust

Learning By Your Mistakes: Tree Felling

I was in my mid-teens when my

dad gave me a bow saw and I

felled my first tree . Presumably

from a safety point of view he

believed the chainsaw he let me

utilise for cutting up firewood in

shorts and pumps too risky. So

when I went on my first BTCV

Natural Break and the leader asked

whether anyone had felled a tree

before I was able to say yes. Fortunately only one large sycamore was allowed to

drop where the whims of wind and gravity dictated

and that wasn’t on me (or anyone else) before the

leader realised I needed to be shown how to do a

directional felling cut, aka birds beak or gob.

Six years of volunteering on and off with the BTCV

taught me the pleasure of felling, snedding and

cross cutting of sycamore followed by the rest of the

day trying to stump up at ground level with a blunt

bow saw.

Memorable lessons included:

• When a large tree hangs up across a valley

cutting through it's bole can cause the tree

to swing across the valley, then swing back

and fall on you.

• Tree felling in blizzard on top of a river cliff

makes your hands go numb and your bill

hook ends up in the river. You then should

not try recover it whilst the river is in spate

and rising as you get washed away as do

the clothes you took off. I also learnt some

earth science on this particular project as

two days later part of the river cliff had

gone including the stump of my tree.

• Sometimes trees have wasp nests at the

top providing additional health benefits for

yourself and the other volunteers in the

form of a short run.

• Not all volunteers can tell the difference

between an oak and a sycamore in winter

leading to the loss of clients.

So by the time I got my first permanent job as a

Ranger, I was deemed competent enough at hand

felling, to be allowed to attend a chainsaw course.

They clearly however had a lower opinion of my

competence than my father as I now had to wear

safety equipment. This was fortunate because

during the course I did decide to test out the

chainsaw stopping quality of the trousers. I am

pleased to say they worked and not surprisingly I do

not have a chainsaw license.

14

INTRODUCING the new water vole officer

I then moved to a post where I thought I was in the

position of choosing which trees the volunteers

(and contractors) would fell based on sound

ecological and woodland management principles.

Failure to consult however lead to lost funding

opportunities following professional intervention and

sycamore trees saved as a result of public outcry.

Years of attendance at Friends group meetings and

a few years of ‘These are the trees I want to fell’

walks have led to a degree of public trust that

enables me to select trees with only minimal public

consultation, whilst years of public cutbacks mean

that colleagues who may or may not trust my

judgement have insufficient time to worry what a

rogue ecologist may be up to in the woods. (Unless

of course there is a complaint).

D a v i d D u t t o n | B u r y C o u n c i I

I arrived at Bickley Hall Farm at the

beginning of January amidst all the snow

and ice, which made it quite a challenge

just getting into work in my first week. I am not

complaining though, I couldn’t wish for more

picturesque surroundings to work in.

I am really excited about my new role as Northwest

Lowlands Water Vole Project Officer and the opportunity

to work with the wide range of stakeholders that are

involved in the project. I previously worked for an

ecological consultancy, which gave me plenty of

experience working with protected species such as great

crested newts, bats, reptiles and of course, water voles.

Once the weather has settled down I will be meeting up

with all the key partners of the project. At the moment I

am busy sorting out my work schedule for the coming

year and I am looking forward to getting out and about,

surveying the ditches, rivers and ponds. Surveying for

water voles will form a large part of my role, and this

season the project will be concentrating on filling in all

the gaps in the survey area. Another priority will be

using the survey data to identify opportunities for

practical conservation and habitat enhancement.

I am fortunate to have Richard Gardner, the previous

water vole officer on hand at Bickley Hall Farm and I

wish him all the best in his new role as Living Landscape

Manager.

Andrea Powell | Cheshire Wildl i fe Trust

15

Wildlife Trust Ploughs On With Mossland Restoration

T he cold snowy weather this

year has presented rather a

few challenges to the

reserve managers of Greater

Manchester’s iconic bogs. However,

with determination and what seems

like a passion for being cold and

wet, they have been racing on with

the restoration of this rare and

special habitat.

The Lancashire Wildlife Trust is in the process of

purchasing large areas of Lowland Raised Bog and

restoring them back to their former glory. The project

hopes to contribute 56% of the Lowland Raised Bog

BAP target, and will benefit a number of other BAP

species such as water vole, cuckoo, common lizard,

common toad and more besides. They are currently

carrying out the capital works required to bring these

areas back to life.

But how easy is it to restore a bog? Thom Dallimore the Wildlife Trusts Mosslands

Project Officer tells us,

“The restoration process can be both a simple

and complicated, it all depends on the

conditions you have to work with. Some of the

sites we have acquired have previously been

heavily drained and block cut for peat, which

leaves a difficult unlevel surface to restore.

Many of the original bog species have already

gone”.

Most of the remaining mosslands within the Greater

Manchester area have been drained and are in the

process of drying out, which has resulted in the

encroachment of dense birch scrub. The Trusts first

task in carrying out restoration is to remove the

scrub. This year they are trying out a new technique,

they are pulling the trees out rather than cutting them

down.

“It may seem like an odd way to remove birch, but it

16

Cadishead M

oss,Thom D

allimore

allows us to open up the dense purple moor grass

that dominates the surface. So as we re-wet we

already have a number of shallow bog pools ready

to be colonised by sphagnum moss. It has also

proven to be a very cost effective way of managing

the scrub” Thom says.

As well as scrub removal it is also important that

these mossland sites are “re-wet”, and the Trust

has begun the process of installing bunds, or dams

to retain rainwater onsite and stop run off being lost

into ditches. The installation of bunds is a muddy

job with machinery prone to sinking. It is not

unheard of for whole diggers to be swallowed up

where the peat is deep. So to tackle this work the

Trust has brought in specialists with machinery

suited for the task, using diggers and soft tracks

with exceptionally wide tread with less downward

pressure per square inch than a human foot.

“Despite the hard work our staff do on the project,

none of this important work would have been

possible if it wasn’t for our funders. The Trust would

like to thank its funders in ensuring that these vital

works continue” Says Martyn Walker, The Wildlife

Trusts Conservation Officer for Greater

Manchester.

Funding for the Mossland project has been

provided by Natural England’s Wetland Vision

Fund, Viridor Environmental Credits and Biffaward

Environment Fund.

Thom Dallimore | Lancashire Wildlife Trust

17

t r e e r e m o v a l a t c a d i s h e a d m o s s

Coming this year: The Amphibian and Reptile Discovery Project!

l© Lucy Lush 2009

18

2010 w i l l

s e e

t h e

launch of The Amphibian and

Reptile Discovery Project, an

initiative by the Amphibian and

Reptile Group of South Lancashire

(ARGSL) to encourage people to

look for amphibians and reptiles and

to record their findings. ARGSL is

dedicated to the conservation of

amphibians and reptiles and the

collection of this information is a key

part of work to protect these

species.

Ponds are straightforward to survey and it should be

easy to collect lots of useful information about

amphibian breeding ponds over the coming months.

Many ponds have never been surveyed and

although there’s often local knowledge about where

amphibians (and even reptiles) can be found, this

information normally isn’t recorded and passed on.

The result is that we have surprisingly little

information on the distribution of amphibians and

reptiles in the north west and the less we know about

their distribution, the less we can do to conserve

them. There’s some evidence that even those

species once regarded as common, (such as the

frog, toad and smooth newt) are much less common

than once thought but without records we have little

evidence either way. The Amphibian and Reptile

Discovery Project will provide a significant step

forward in our understanding of amphibian and

reptile distribution in North West England and

Greater Manchester in particular.

As part of the project ARGSL is planning a series of

training events covering all the skills needed to

conduct an amphibian survey. Registration at an

ARGSL training event costs £6, or free to members.

A series of leaflets will be produced later this spring

and these will be available to download from

www.argsl.org.uk. Throughout the project, ARGSL

will be working closely with other groups including

the Amphibian and Reptile Group of South

Manchester which is active in the Chorlton/

Stockport areas.

Your knowledge about a pond may be

unique so please let us know what

you’ve seen!

Everyone is encouraged to get involved with the

Amphibian and Reptile Discovery Project as it’s

impossible to collect data from many sites (such as

school and garden ponds) without help from the

public.

ARGSL will process all the records received during

the project and include them in the ARGSL records

database. This information will then be shared with

local records centres and the National Biodiversity

Network.

You can submit your records by e-

mailing the address below, by using

ARGSL’s online recording form, or

by completing a paper recording

form which can be downloaded from

the group’s website.

The Amphibian and Reptile Discovery Project will be

launched in early spring and information about

forthcoming events will be available from mid

February.

For further information of how you can

get involved please e-mail David

Orchard, chair of the Amphibian and

Reptile Group of South Lancashire at

argsl@btinternet.com or keep an eye on

the ARGSL website at www.argsl.org.uk.

D a v i d O r c h a r d | C h a i r o f t h e

A m p h i b i a n a n d R e p t i l e G r o u p o f

S o u t h L a n c a s h i r e

Copyright Tracy Farrer

19

more local nature reserves for bol ton

L ocal Nature Reserves are

places where wildlife

habitats and natural features

are protected. They are places

where local people can enjoy and

learn about wild plants and animals

in their natural environment..

Certain local authorities have the power under

section 21 of The National Parks and Access to the

Countryside Act 1949 to declare important wildlife

areas as Local Nature Reserves.

Bolton presently has seven Local Nature Reserves

with another on the border with Wigan at Borsdane

Wood.

The Council’s Environment Strategy commits us to

designate more Local Nature Reserves by 2011 in

line with targets set by Natural England, the

government’s countryside advisor.

Natural England recommends 1ha of

Local Nature Reserve per 1000 of

population. This meant Bolton needed to

have 263ha of Reserve compared to the

52ha in 2008. A 400% increase.

Surveys and research is well underway and a

shortlist of sites compiled for around 19

new Local Nature Reserves across the borough

(see Bolton Wildlife Trust article).

February 2009 saw the first of these declarations of

Moses Gate LNR.

Expansion of the Local Nature Reserve (LNR)

infrastructure has long been considered the council’s

duty and this confirmed by inclusion of a target within

Bolton’s Environmental Strategy. It also is reflected

in several other policies relating to sustainability and

biodiversity and complements the Red Rose Forest

community woodland initiative and meets Local

Agenda 21 targets.

The Bolton Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) helped to

identify potential reserves and the reserves in turn

Area Update

Bradshaw Valley proposed LNR: Bolton Council

20

will aid in protecting and enhancing the plants and

animals the BAP has highlighted. The Local

Development Framework and Unitary Development

Policy also relate planning policy to LNRs, as do

Supplementary Policy Guidance Notes and Policy

Planning Statements, notably PPS9 in relation to

nature conservation. More recently, the Natural

Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act

2006 raises the duty of Local Authorities to conserve

biodiversity, to a legal obligation.

Whilst there is an abundance of policy backing for

designating more LNR’s, the benefits for wildlife and

local residents should not be understated.

Sustainability is high on everybody’s agenda at

present, with LNR’s being at the forefront of

sustainable greenspace management. Having

important areas for wildlife locally, gives most of

Bolton’s population the opportunity to interact with

wildlife on their door step, seeing trees and

wildflowers, birds, butterflies and dragonflies

surviving and flourishing in their local community. It

is not just dog walkers and ramblers who get the

benefits. Children at play, schools and other

educational groups get to enjoy the reserves. Adults

can join health walks, get involved in conservation

tasks, learn about wildlife alongside their children

and even get involved with management decisions of

their local reserve.

Due to the size of the project, it is necessary to

phase the project over 3 years or maybe more. This

will be determined by the amount of administration

each site requires to meet the declaration and

resources available to undertake the process. It is

hoped that the outcome will result in Bolton having

Local Nature Reserves in excess of the required

target and within easy reach of the majority of the

local population. This is not just about meeting

targets though. It is about protecting and enhancing

the wildlife value in our local communities and

providing the opportunity for local people to learn

about and enjoy native plants and animals in their

natural habitats. There will be a lot of work to do but

the benefits will be widely appreciated over future

years.

A n d y G r u n d y | B o l t o n C o u n c i l

Eagley Valley proposed LNR: Bolton Council

21

environment agency

T he North West River Basin Management Plan

On the 22nd December

2009, the Environment Agency and

Defra published the first cycle of the

N o r t h W e s t R i v e r B a s i n

Management Plan, along with 10

others across England & Wales.

The plan sets out what the Environment Agency -

and other organisations - need to do to meet the

requirements of the European Water

Framework Directive (WFD) between now and 2015.

By 2015, 21% of surface waters (i.e. rivers, lakes,

estuaries and coastal waters) in the NW river basin

district are going to improve for at least one

biological, chemical or physical element, measured

as part of an assessment of good status according to

the WFD. This includes an improvement of 1,867

kilometres of the river network in relation to fish,

phosphate, specific pollutants and other elements.

In addition, 33% of all water bodies will be at good or

better ecological status or potential by 2015. The

Environment Agency wants to go further and achieve

an additional 2% improvement to surface waters

across England and Wales by 2015.

The biological parts of how the water environment is

assessed are key indicators. At least 41% of

assessed surface waters will be at good or better

biological status by 2015.

In order to meet these targets, it is important for

everyone to play their part now and in the future.

River basin management is an opportunity for this

generation, for people and organisations, to work

together to improve the quality of every aspect of the

water environment – to create an environment we

are all proud of and can enjoy.

For more information, please visit:

www.environment-agency.gov.uk/wfd

Duncan Revel l | Gary Morr is

manchester city council

V aluing Manchester's Wildlife Do you Value Manchester

Wildlife? Then tell us about it!

We want to know what local people think about

Biodiversity in Manchester. How important is nature

in Manchester? Does it matter to you? Do you enjoy

Area Update 22

feeding the birds or going for walks in the Park?

What role does nature play in your life? YOU can

help provide the answers to all these questions, by

filling in this quick questionnaire now.

We also want you to tell us your stories about what

makes Nature special to you. If you've got a good

wildlife story, tell us about it! It could be your love of

the dawn chorus, checking out the frogs in your

garden pond or simply feeding the ducks in the local

park.

For more information, contact Dave Barlow on

d.barlow@manchester.gov.uk

Spend a couple of minutes filling in this quick questionnaire to help us find out what people think about Nature in Manchester:

Dave Bar low | Manchester Ci ty Counci l

natural england

U pdates to Environmental S t e w a r d s h i p E n v i r o n m e n t a l

Stewardship is playing an important

role in securing signif icant

environmental benefits in England.

£2.9 billion of funding is helping

support sustainable agriculture

practices and at the start of 2009

over six million hectares of

England’s agricultural land was

covered by approximately 60,000

environmental agreements.

Though extensive areas of the country are under

agreement Natural England is working to increase

the coverage to 70 per cent of land by March 2011.

To help achieve this, a series of changes including

the introduction of new options and changes to

existing ones, are being implemented.

Natural England

23

To support these changes new 3rd Edition

Environmental Stewardship Handbooks for Entry

Level Stewardship (ELS), Organic Entry Level

Stewardship (OELS) and Higher Level Stewardship

(HLS) are available on the Natural England website

now (http://naturalengland.etraderstores.com/

NaturalEnglandShop/NE226).

2010 also brings a new scheme for upland land

managers called Uplands ELS. UELS will succeed

the Hill Farm Allowance, which ends in 2010, and

will be open to all farmers and land managers in

England’s ‘Severely Disadvantaged Areas (SDAs).

UELS will encourage farmers and land managers to

maintain and improve the biodiversity, natural

resources, landscape and historical value of the

uplands.

If you would like further information about

environmental stewardship, or the new UELS

options please contact Incentive Scheme

Services at Natural England on 0300 060 1113

Alternatively please contact David Kingsley-

Rowe at Natural England on 0300 060 2774.

HLS in Action HLS agreements are providing benefits for a range

of species and habitats, including the most rapidly

declining and most vulnerable.

HLS Agreements, which run for 10 years, allow more

complex environmental management options to be

applied that can be tailored for individual species

and habitats.

A recent application in the region included the

following options designed to benefit biodiversity:

• Measures to restore 4.7ha of lowland

raised bog

• C.2ha of enhanced wild bird seed plots for

corn bunting and tree sparrow

• 10 new tree sparrow boxes

• 300m2 scrape creation for lapwing

• 1ha pollen and nectar plot

• Three beetle banks

• 10 skylark plots in winter wheat

• Management of grass margins around

ditches for water vole

Natural England

Area Update 24

The North West, including Greater Manchester, is a

key target area for HLS in 2010. For further

information please see:

http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/farming/

funding/es/default.aspx

A key part of Natural England’s remit is to increase

opportunities for people to enjoy and get involved in

their surroundings. Greater Manchester is a target

area for us in 2010 and a range of initiatives and

activities around campaigns such as; One Million

Kids Outdoors; Walking for Health; and International

Year of Biodiversity will be taking place.

More in format ion can be found a t

w w w . n a t u r a l e n g l a n d . o r g . u k , o r h t t p : / /

www.wfh.naturalengland.org.uk/. Alternatively,

please call David Kingsley-Rowe at Natural England

on 0300 060 2774.

D a v i d K i n g s l e y - R o w e | N a t u r a l

E n g l a n d

o ldham counci l

M oston Brook Green Corridor Moston Brook

Green Corridor is a large area of

green space of around 60 hectares

(that’s almost 120 football pitches!)

stretching from the Rochdale Canal

at Failsworth to Dean Lane Train

Station, Manchester.

The corridor is split between Oldham Council and

Manchester City Council, with the brook itself

marking the boundary and is part of the wider Irk

Valley - a key element of the wider greenspace

network for Greater Manchester.

Providing space for people and wildlife, the corridor

contains recreation areas, a range of habitats, and

places of historic interest. However, these positive

qualities have recently been affected by problems

such as the water quality of the brook, fly-tipping and

off-road bike nuisance.

As a result of this problem Manchester and Oldham

Councils are working together, with key partners and

local residents, to work out how best to improve and

maintain this valuable green corridor. Recent

projects and developments include:

Moston Brook Officer Recruited

Manchester City Council and Oldham Council

successfully secured funding for a dedicated project

officer for Moston Brook, to work with the partners

and the community to fulfil the aspirations of the

Moston Brook Partnership. Many high quality

candidates were attracted to the position, but we are

pleased to announce that we have appointed Ann

Bates, an experienced officer from the Mersey Basin

25

Campaign and a local resident in Moston! She will

start work in January 2010 and will be the

coordinator of public and partnership involvement in

projects along the brook.

Quick Wins Project

After securing a £12,000 grant from the Greening

Greater Manchester fund, recent months have seen

the Red Rose Forest Green Streets team working

with the Partnership to deliver a series of 'Quick Win'

improvements that had been identified by residents.

These have included improvements to footpaths,

vegetation management, and the provision of access

controls, benches, and fishing platforms.

Invasive Species Mapping Update

The Forestry Commission have funded the

Greater Manchester Ecological Unit (GMEU) to

map all the invasive species, such as Japanese

Knotweed, which blight the environment across

the Moston Brook corridor. This has

helped Oldham and Manchester Councils and

the Environment Agency to combine their

resources and expertise to complete the

mammoth task of targeting and spraying almost

all of this pesky plant this year. Work will

continue in 2010 to complete the treatment of

the remaining Knotweed.

Newlands 2 Programme Bid

Development work has continued this year under the

Newlands2 Land Reclamation Programme with

Oldham and Manchester Councils working with the

Forestry Commission towards a significant funding

bid to the North West Development Agency (NWDA).

So far we have secured £387,000 from Newlands for

development and site investigation work at Moston

Brook.

A further bid for the reclamation of the whole corridor

has been submitted for approval from the NWDA so

fingers crossed, we’ll hopefully have good news on

this early in 2010!

pond conservat ion

We’re on our way to a million ponds

T he Million Ponds Project was

launched in February last year to

reverse a century of decline in

pond numbers and quality, ensuring there

is once again a million ponds in the

countryside. To get the ball rolling, a

partnership of landowners, land

managers, and influential organisations

Area Update 26

working in England and Wales, led by

Pond Conservation, have committed to

creating five thousand new ponds in four

years.

So how far has the ball rolled in the first year?

• The Project Officers, including a new officer

working with the minerals industry, have swung into

action, spreading the word, providing advice and

support, and running training courses for hundreds

of people.

• The Pond Creation Toolkit, a series of factsheets

on all aspects of ponds creation, has proved a very

popular resource, with over 18,000 visits online,

and has received many positive comments about its

usefulness.

• The Pond Digging Fund set up by Pond

Conservation and Biffaward has made it possible

for many new ponds to be dug for priority species

such as grass snake, fairy shrimp, and bearded

stonewort.

• And most importantly, many new clean water ponds

haven been dug.

Despite it being a very built up area, there are still

opportunities to create clean water ponds in Greater

Manchester, and some interesting applications have been

received for the Biffaward Pond Digging Fund. At Abney

Hall, Cheadle, Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council

and the Amphibian and Reptile Group of South

Manchester are working together to create six new ponds

for the common toad, using the Pond Digging Fund.

This site illustrates nicely some of the key features of

good pond creation schemes: a complex of 6 ponds will

be dug providing a variety of habitats; the ponds will be in

unimproved or semi-natural habitat ensuring good water

quality; the ponds are designed appropriately for the

target species; the ponds are in a suitable location for the

species – toads have been recorded on the site very

recently; the local toad population is fairly isolated by the

adjacent motorway and dense housing surrounding the

site so new ponds are needed to give it boost.

The ambitious aims of Million Pond Project are only

achievable if lots of landowners and managers get

involved and follow the guidelines to dig high quality

ponds. This is something everyone can help with. Even if

the only land you can dig a pond in is your back garden,

you can still make a difference for pond wildlife. Find out

more at www.pondconservation.org.uk, and get digging!

Becca Cleaver |

Pond

Conservation

rochdale counci l

W inter in Rochdale sees a lot

of activity around our

27

woodlands. The council was one of

a number of authorities in Greater

Manchester to take part in BBC

promoted Tree O’clock planting on a

new s i te a t Tunne l End,

Littleborough.

This is just the first phase of activity on this site,

which will include woodland planting, and

restoration of ponds and footpaths. The work is

being undertaken in partnership with the Friends of

Summit Quarry. The site has a fascinating history, as

it is at the entrance to Summit railway tunnel and

includes some of the air shafts and spoil mounds

from the tunnel. In addition some quarrying has

taken place, and a series of non native trees

including juniper have been planted on the site

probably by a local woodworker.

February is being promoted as community woodland

month in the borough with a series of activities taking

place to raise interest in and awareness of the

woodland in the borough. Activities planned so far

include a display at Hollingworth lake visitor centre,

practical woodland management tasks, tree

identification and a woodland management course.

During the course of the planting season United

Utilities also hope to plant the 32ha of upland oak

woodland planned for the Greenbooth and

Watergrove catchments as a part of their sustainable

catchment management programme.

We are also hoping to undertake a series of activities

for the International Year of Biodiversity 2010. Ideas

are very much in the planning stage, but we hope to

use this year to celebrate the biodiversity of the

borough.

E m i l y B a r k e r | R o c h d a l e C o u n c i l

stockport counci l

P rojects in Stockport Wright’s Wood Funding

Won. Funding to work on a

project at Stockport’s newest Local

Area Update 28

Rochdale Council

Nature Reserve, Wright’s Wood, has

recently been awarded from Awards for

All. The project was put together by

Stockport Nature Network, working

closely with the Local Authority and

interested local residents.

The site, a small woodland containing a pond, is a

Local Nature Reserve and also a Site of Biological

Importance. The money has been awarded to carry

out habitat management of the site, including

treatment of rhododendron, cherry laurel and

snowberry which dominate the habitats in certain

areas, and to improve the access and educational

value of the site. This includes the provision of a

board walk to create a circular walk around the site

and interpretation boards and signage to increase

visitor awareness of the site. The work on site is

scheduled to start in February 2010 and the project

should be completed within 12 months.

Reddish Vale Country Park Work to improve the reservoirs for both people and

wildlife is well underway at Reddish Vale Country

Park. The work has been undertaken by the Council

with help from the Environment Agency and

volunteers from the local community. Footpaths

have been resurfaced to improve access. Willow

groynes have been installed in one of the reservoirs

to create a natural screen and fish refuges have

been constructed and installed to improve the habitat

for fish and other aquatic organisms.

Funding is being applied for to further improve the

reservoirs by planting common reed, installing more

fish refuges and increasing the marginal vegetation

along some of the banking.

Chadkirk Country Estate Funding from Greening Greater Manchester has

allowed woodland management that has been

carried out in previous years to continue. Work has

focused on thinning the woodland, targeting mature

sycamores to open up the canopy and improve the

woodland structure.

This work has proved to be very successful with the

areas of thinned woodland supporting a varied

ground flora, much richer than the surrounding areas

which have not been managed. Money has also

been invested in equipment to improve the grassland

management on the site.

The grassland at Chadkirk is grazed by rare breed

cattle and sheep, at low stocking densities and is cut

a baled in the late summer each year. This varied

management has greatly improved the biodiversity of

the site with birds such as snipe and lapwing

recorded on the site – and even a little egret

recorded in the fields in January 2010!

Events in Stockport

Every Wednesday 10am-1pm, Reddish Vale Community Garden

29

Come and join us gardening at Reddish Vale

Community Garden.

Age Group - Open to all

Price - Free

Contact - Reddish Vale Country Park, Reddish Vale

Country Park, Mill Lane, Reddish, Stockport SK5

7HE Tel. No. 0161 477 5637 / 0161 474 4512 Email.

parks@stockport.gov.uk

Every Thursday, 10am-3pm Mersey Vale Nature Park Join the rangers on various conservation tasks. For

all activities meet Mersey Vale Nature Park ranger at

Burnage Rugby Club car park at 10am. Activities are

supervised by Rachel Bennett, Countryside Ranger

(SMBC) from 10am – 3pm. Bring suitable clothing,

stout boots or shoes and a packed lunch. Hot drinks

and drinking water provided. If you have any

questions please contact Rachel Bennett on

07800617863 o r a l t e rna t i ve l y ema i l :

Rachel.Bennett@Stockport.gov.uk

Sat, 30 January, 10am-3pm Heaton Mersey Common Hedgelaying event at Heaton Mersey Common,

Mersey Road, Heaton Moor, Stockport SK4 3DJ.

Meet at Mersey Road entrance. Please wear

suitable clothing and footwear and bring along a pair

of thick gardening gloves if you have them. Contact

R a c h e l B e n n e t t o r K e i t h D y a l l

parks@stockport.gov.uk

Sat 30th January, 10.30-12.30, Reddish Vale: Big Garden Bird watch

If you love birds and want to help them, then the Big

Garden Birdwatch is your chance to do something

that really counts! The RSPB will be teaching us how

to identify garden birds and how to carry out the bird

survey that for more than 30 years has had the

whole country paying attention to what is going on

with our birds.

Meeting point: Visitor Centre, Mill Lane, Reddish,

SK5 7HE. Dress for the weather and if you can

bring a pair of binoculars - there will be some

available to share as well.

Sun 14th February, 11-12.30pm Reddish Vale: Winter Wildlife It's cold but (wild) life goes on! Discover what is out

and about in the Park in this walk lead by our

Rangers. Meeting point: Visitor Centre, Mill Lane,

Reddish, SK5 7HE. Dress for the weather and if you

can bring a pair of binoculars - there will be some

available to share as well.

Sat 6th March, 10.30-12.30 Reddish Vale Bring your family for a walk with the RSPB -

birds are starting to sing, and now is a great time to

get to know who is who in the bird world! Meeting

point: Visitor Centre, Mill Lane, Reddish, SK5 7HE.

Dress for the weather and if you can bring a pair of

binoculars - there will be some available to share as

well.

30

Fri 26th March, 10.30-12.30 Reddish Vale Landscapes and details - digital

photography

Bring your own camera or use one of ours to capture

the beauty of Reddish Vale Country Park. A session

about looking for inspiration in scenery and creating

shape and form with natural objects. Selected

images produced in this workshop will be used in a

slideshow shown at the Arc Community Gallery and

touring to other Stockport venues. Meeting point:

Visitor Centre, Mill Lane, Reddish, SK5 7HE

E m m a W i l s o n | S t o c k p o r t C o u n c i l

tameside counc i l

I n Tameside 80% of the area is

some kind of greenspace, and

46% can be considered as

countryside. Based on existing data

about 30% of Tameside may be

Priority or Key habitats. Eighteen such

habitats occur (see below), however for 4

of these (reedbeds, rivers, arable field

margins and open mosaic habitats on

previously developed land) it’s doubtful

that those in Tameside meet the criteria

that defines them as Priority habitats.

Priority / key species present includes 6

mammals, 2 amphibians, 2 reptiles, 20 birds, and 4

plants. Some of these occur within areas providing

some protection, with 3 Sites of Special Scientific

Interest, 55 Sites of Biological Importance, 8 Local

Natures Reserves (4 more planned), and 3 other

Nature Reserves. One of the SSSI’s is also part of a

larger Special Area for Conservation and Special

Protection Area covering a large part of the Southern

Pennines moors.

Priority / key habitats: Blanket bog, upland

flushes, fens and swamps, upland heath,

upland oak woodland (these combine into

moorland), wet woodland, lowland heathland,

lowland acid grassland, lowland meadows,

lowland mixed deciduous woodland, marshy

grassland, ponds, canals, hedgerows, and

urban managed greenspace.

31

Ashton Broadleaved woodland Speckled Wood

Audenshaw Ponds and Lodges Dragonflies

Denton Broadleaved woodland Bluebell

Dukinfield Urban managed greenspace Fox

Droylsden Canals Water Vole

Hyde Lowland Meadows Hay Rattle

Stalybridge Moorland Hares

Mossley Acid Grassland Skylark

Longdendale Broadleaved woodland Oak

Flagship habitats and species In order to give local communities a focus for getting

to grips with biodiversity we have picked the most

abundant and distinctive Priority / Key habitat for

each of the nine towns in Tameside. For each towns

habitat we have selected a species associated with

that habitat, that highlights certain biodiversity

conservation issues. These are:

Action This year one of our target habitats is hedgerows,

and the Countryside Service has identified several

for restoration by laying and replanting, but with help

from GMBAP is also creating new ones at 4 of its

sites. This was started on Dec 5th as part of the

Breathing Places world tree planting record attempt,

when nearly 200m was planted at 3 of the sites in an

hour, by staff, volunteers and people from local

communities. Once the unusually wintry conditions

have gone we hope to plant another 250m of native

species hedge.

w i l d l i f e t r u s t f o r

l ancash i re , g rea te r

manchester & Merseyside

S ave Our Mosslands – Stop Peat Extraction Now!! Peat extraction

ought to be a thing of the past like

the dinosaurs - but it isn’t! There are

three large peat extraction sites in the Chat Moss

area west of Manchester and planning permission

for one of these sites expires at the end of 2010. It

was expected that once the extraction had finished,

the site would be restored as an active mossland,

but we now know that this is not what the developers

have in mind.

Area Update

Peat extraction site at Chat Moss

32

Opportunities We are expecting a planning application to be

submitted any day now which will ask for even more

peat to be extracted, and this will push the date for

restoration into the distant future. Needless to say,

the more peat that is extracted, the more difficult it

will be to restore the site anyway.

L a n c a s h i r e

Wildlife Trust is

co-ordinating a

major plan of

opposition to

the proposal.

Peat extraction

runs counter to

both local and

national policies

and will have a

c o n t i n u i n g

devastating effect

not just on the biodiversity of the site, but on carbon

emissions.

The campaign will kick off in earnest once the

application has been submitted, but we wanted to

alert you now, and also to ask

“Is there anyone out there who would like to be

involved in a campaign to stop peat extraction?”

If you would like to help please get in touch with

David Crawshaw - for preference by emailing

dcrawshaw@lancswt.org.uk or phone 01772 324129

F U N D I N G

S c o u t M o o r W i n d F a r m H a b i t a t F u n d Deadline: 28th February 2010

http://www.peelenergy.co.uk/scout-moor-

wind-farm-/habitat-enhancement-plan-

fund-the-hep

B i f f a w a r d P o n d D i g g i n g F u n d

www.pondconserva t ion .o rg .uk /

m i l l i onponds / fund ing

S I T A E n r i c h i n g

N a t u r e F u n d

Next deadlines: 15th February 2010

25th June 2010

www.sitatrust.org.uk/nature-funding

Restored Mossland site at Astley Moss: Lancashire Wildlife Trust

33