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Countryman
Diary - January 2008
Greening of our urban waterways is
attracting a colourful visitor
What could be more cheery on a wet, miserable
wintry day than the image of a busy little kingfisher on a daily
dash up and down the river. Or maybe you have the picture in
your mind of a gushing TV presenter dressed up like some camouflaged
jungle guerrilla perched precariously on some damp bank hoping
to catch a glimpse of Britain’s most flamboyant flier.
But it’s not necessary to buy a TV licence,
possess a vivid imagination or tramp overland to some country
back-water to view the kingfisher. Nowadays it frequently makes
celebrity appearances along Britain’s urban waterways.
Despite the poor summer, British Waterways’ fourth National
Waterway Wildlife Survey recorded over 300 sightings of the kingfisher,
including in areas like central London, Manchester, Aylesbury,
Coventry and Preston.
British Waterways’ ecologists were particularly
keen to track sightings of the kingfisher as it is generally
accepted as a key indicator of good water quality and a healthy
ecosystem. In response, a number of kingfisher habitat improvement
projects are now planned, including the installation of special
boxes, posts and tunnels to help support populations in a number
of locations like the Regent’s Canal in central London,
the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal and the Grand Union
Canal at Leighton Buzzard.
Mark Robinson, national ecology manager for
British Waterways, told me: “We are delighted to hear of
so many sightings of kingfishers on our waterways. As well as
being a strikingly beautiful bird, kingfishers are an important
indicator of the general health of the waterway ecosystem. It
shows the important role waterways have in greening our towns
and cities by providing wildlife corridors which help sustain
populations of a variety of both common and endangered species,
including bats, water voles and otters.”
The survey also indicates that the warm autumn
days following our wet summer appear to have caused confusion.
Common darter dragonflies, which normally disappear by autumn,
were spotted, while two unusual southern insects, the saw fly
and a gristled skipper butterfly, were seen in the Midlands for
the first time.
The kingfisher was the fourth most common sighting
behind the mallard, swan and heron. Encouragingly, there were
also plenty of records of some of the UK’s rarer species
including water voles, otters and bats and a number of more unexpected
animals like seals and turtles were spotted.
No American invasion yet
There’s more good news from another survey,
this time carried out on a stretch of the River Wansbeck, which
flows through the National Trust’s Wallington Estate in
Northumberland. It reveals this area as a top site in England
for one of Britain’s endangered animals, the white-clawed
crayfish.
Numbers have declined dramatically as a result
of the impact of the American signal crayfish which are larger,
more aggressive and carry the crayfish plague (a disease that
is fatal to white-clawed crayfish). The pollution of rivers and
degradation of river habitats caused by inappropriate land management
practices have also played a substantial part in their decline.
The survey work was carried out by trust warden
John Jamieson who found that there was a chance of finding a
crayfish under two out of every three of the stones they use
as refuges. In total eight sample sites were monitored during
the two-week survey and 250 white-clawed crayfish were found.
No American signal crayfish were found on the river and the trust
will continue to monitor the site.
John says: “Results from this survey
have confirmed that the River Wansbeck is an internationally
important stronghold for the white-clawed crayfish. We now have
the data to help focus our work on how we can further strengthen
their habitats and make sure that the crayfish can flourish.”
You’d think gran never had fun
After heavy rain at the back end of November
I went for a stroll to view some local waterfalls. To get there
you have to cross an uneven field which through lack of a proper
path is a tricky crossing when wet. There was a family group
heading towards the spectacle with Grannie bringing up the rear
some way behind. She was shooing-on the others to push ahead,
not wanting them to fuss over her obvious difficulty in negotiating
the slippery landscape. “You’ll end up on your backside,” shouted
a concerned daughter.
As I passed the game old bird, with a twinkle
in her eye she whispered to me: “You’d think it was
the first time I’d been flat on my back in a field.” We
giggled and I moved on just a little shocked.
May you all keep a little fire burning inside
during 2008.
Paul Jackson
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