Download Conservation

Habitat Management
Environmental Studies
Objectives
• To look at the range of options available to
protect or encourage species in the wild.
Habitat Management
National and Local Nature Reserves and protected areas
are used to prevent disturbance or damage to an
existing habitat.
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Studland Heath NNR,
Winterton Dunes NNR,
Minsmere RSPB reserve,
Slimbridge WWT reserve Gloucestershire,
Loch Garten RSPB reserve Scotland
• National Parks in many countries outside UK
– Masai Mara, Kenya;
– Serengeti, Tanzania;
– Great Barrier reef, Australia
Habitat
Management
• We can maintain a habitat by counteracting
undesirable change
– ecological succession will occur when
a new species is introduced.
– Culling or removal of dominant or introduced predators
and competitors allows the original wildlife back.
• removal of rhododendron and bracken from heathland and
moorland
• removal of willow carr woodland on Catfield fen, Norfolk, to
encourage swallowtail butterflies
• removal of invasive scrub from Magdalen Hill Down,
Hampshire, for butterfly conservation:
– Brown argus,
– Green hairstreak,
– Chalk-hill blue
Magdalen Hill Down
• Years ago, the hillside was a paradise of wild flowers and butterflies.
But by 1989 there was a heavy growth of wild privet, dogwood,
bramble and hawthorn, which threatened the delicate flowers and
the butterflies that depend on them.
• The scrub has now been cleared and is kept under control: only
selected thickets are retained to give shelter and provide a habitat
for birds and other creatures. Many shrubs and trees are the larval
food plants for moths.
Habitat Management
• We can increase an areas wildlife value by making the
conditions more suitable for the desired species
– providing bird/bat boxes,
– raising the water table in a wetland habitat,
– Increasing habitat diversity,
– biological corridors such as hedgerows
Habitat Management
To restore valuable damaged habitats
• Biodiversity Action Plans provide multi-agency, coordinated
approach to species conservation.
-www.ukbap.org.uk
-www.bucksinfo.net/wildlife/biodiversity-action-plan/
Habitat Management
Habitat creation
• Altering an unsuitable habitat so that the
desired species can survive there
– woodland planting,
– pond creation
– Wetlands
– www.afterminerals.com
• Case study
• Manor farm
Key Terms
UK Designations
Environmental Studies
Conservation in the UK
The government has organisations such as
Natural England and the Countryside Council
for Wales which are in charge of protecting sites
of ecological importance and which contain
endangered species.
Site Designations
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SSSI, Site Specific Scientific Interest
NNR, National Nature Reserve
LNR Local Nature Reserve
MNR, Marine Nature Reserves
ESA Environmentally Sensitive Areas
SPA, Special Protection Area
SAC, Special Areas of Conservation
Ramsar Site, marine
UK Designations
Designation of a protected area restricts the
damaging activities which may take place.
Many areas have multiple designations to give
additional or different types of protection.)
1. Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs)
Areas of particular interest because of their
plants, animals, geographical or geological
features.
– e.g. Bure Marshes, Norfolk
Bure Marshes, Norfolk
2. National Nature Reserves (NNR)
Usually SSSIs which are good examples of important
habitats with complete communities of species.
– e.g. Studland Heath, Dorset
3. Local Nature Reserves (LNR)
– Owned or controlled by local authorities for the
benefit of wildlife and the public
4. Marine Nature Reserve (MNR)
– e.g. Lundy Island, Skomer
5. Environmentally Sensitive Areas
• The Environmentally Sensitive Areas Scheme
was introduced in 1987 to offer incentives to
encourage farmers to adopt agricultural
practices which would safeguard and enhance
parts of the country of particularly high
landscape, wildlife or historic value.
• It has since been replaced with the
Environmental Stewardship Scheme (ESS).
International Designations
6. Special Protection Areas (SPAs)
• as a result of the EU Birds Directive.
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The Solent,
Exe Estuary,
Parts of the Bristol Channel,
Humber Estuary
7. Special Areas of Conservation (SACs)
As a result of the EU Habitats Directive.
-Forest Mires in the New Forest
8. Ramsar sites
• Wetlands of international
importance.
– eg Minsmere RSPB
reserve,
– Exe Estuary
Ramsar Sites -The Convention on
Wetlands of International
Importance, Especially as
Waterfowl Habitats (The Ramsar
Convention) is an
intergovernmental treaty that
aims to stem the progressive
encroachment on and loss of
wetlands now and in the future.
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Conservation in the UK
Environmental Studies
Mouse Eared Bat
Burbot
Essex Emerald Moth
Summer lady's tresses
Species Extinct in UK
Mouse-eared bat, (1990)
Essex emerald moth, (1991 - extinct in the wild)
Ivell's sea anemone, (1983)
Norfolk damselfly, (1957)
Burbot, (1972)
Horned dung beetle, (1955)
Summer lady's tresses, (1959)
Species Recovery
Programme
A programme run by Natural England
to conserve particular endangered
species, examples include:
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dormouse,
greater horseshoe bat,
red squirrel,
skylark,
red kite,
lady’s slipper orchid
Species Recovery
Programme
• Traditionally, species conservation centred on
maintaining plants and animals by legal protection
and general habitat management.
• The Species Recovery Programme extends the
'traditional' approach by identifying and actively
targeting the needs of individual plants and
animals, and encouraging practical action that
ensures a rapid progression from planning to
management trials of both species and habitat.
Species Recovery Programme
• New ways have been found to boost species
populations by moving some animals and
plants from large established populations to
restored habitats elsewhere, or through reintroductions using captive bred animals and
propagated plants.
Species Recovery Programme
The Species Recovery Programme follows five action steps, each supported by
research and monitoring. The final step is reached when the populations of the
targeted animal or plant are judged sufficiently recovered to be maintained by
good habitat management practice.
Agri-environmental schemes
Environmental Studies
Agri-environmental schemes
Agri environmental systems provide financial support to
farmers to reward and encourage environmentally beneficial
development.
The Environmental Stewardship Scheme (ESS) is an example
of an agri-environmental scheme.
The scheme is run by Natural England
Environmental Stewardship Scheme
Aims:
– Conserve wildlife (biodiversity)
– Maintain and enhance landscape quality and
character
– Protect the historic environment
– Promote public access and understanding
– Protect natural resources
Three options within the ESS:
1. Entry Level Stewardship
A fixed payment is made for environmentally
beneficial management
– over-wintering stubbles,
– beetle banks,
– hedgerow stone wall and ditch management,
– field buffer strips,
– wild bird seeds,
– low input grasslands,
– protected archaeological sites,
– reduced soil erosion,
– protection of in-field trees
Beetle bank - winter
This is a raised bank that runs across an arable field. The bank is made by ploughing and
is planted with perennial tussock-forming grasses.
It improves the natural biological control of cereal aphids. Aphids can build up in such
numbers that spraying with an insecticide is necessary to prevent yield loss. Beetle
banks are home to ground beetles which feed in the cereal crop and control the invading
aphids. Farmers who have beetle banks rarely need to use summer insecticides.
Summer Time
Pollen Nectar Mix
Field Margin
Entry Level Stewardship
• Anyone who owns, farms or manages agricultural
land can apply to take out an Entry Level Stewardship
agreement.
• Each option carries a points score,
– per hectare (e.g. grassland management),
– per metre (e.g. hedgerow management)
– per feature (e.g. in-field trees).
• If the farm receives enough points then it can be
included in the scheme. All agreements are paid at a
flat rate of £30 per hectare per year, and last 5 years.
Organic Entry Level Stewardship
Similar to Entry Level Stewardship but with a
higher payment level.
Farms can receive money for both OELS and ELS.
Higher Level Stewardship
Extra payments for more complex management or
projects
– flower-rich grass margins,
– unharvested conservation field headlands for winter bird
food,
– restoration of wet grassland for waders and wildfowl,
– water meadow restoration,
– maintenance or restoration of
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sand dunes,
hedgerows,
moorland,
traditional orchards,
ponds,
woodlands,
Conservation Headland
DEFRA
Environmental Studies
DEFRA – Department
for Environment, food
and rural affairs
Defra's overarching aim is sustainable development.
• There are 5 priorities
– Climate change and energy.
– Sustainable consumption and production
– Protecting the countryside and natural resource
protection.
– Sustainable rural communities.
– A sustainable farming and food sector including
animal health and welfare.
Voluntary Organisations
Environmental Studies
Voluntary organisations
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)
• Public awareness raising, lobbying industry
and governments, education, funding for
environmental projects
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http://wwf.org.uk/what_we_do/changing_the_way_we_live/index.cfm
RSPB
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
• Public awareness raising, lobbying industry and governments,
education, reserve purchase management.
• Research grants to fund other conservation organisations,
joint activities with other conservation organisations.
• Bird conservation is the focus of activities but broader issues
are covered.
UK Habitats
Environmental Studies
UK Habitats
Introduction to UK habitats
• Most important wildlife habitats in the UK are semi-natural
and have been affected by human activities.
• Many are plagioclimaxes (an area or habitat in which the
influences of the human race, have prevented the system
from expanding further.
• Long-term management has produced communities of
wildlife species that thrive as long as the management
practices are maintained.
• Eg Studland Heath in Dorset
What would happen if humans were not here?
Natural Succession
Management Practices
Humans undertake management practices that
benefit other organisms, either directly or indirectly.
Farming:
• Grazing - wildflowers
that survive as grazing
controls taller plants.
Management Practices
Farming
• Field boundary maintenance - hedges act as
biological corridors for dormice; hawthorn
berries provide food for Redwings
Management Practices
Hunting and fishing
Hunting and fishing:
• Maintenance of cover - small woodlands which provide cover
for pheasants have dead wood in which woodpeckers find
food.
Management Practices
Farming
• Moorland and Heathland burning –
– The objective of burning is to maintain vegetation
with enough nutritional value for grazing animals
and to create arable land.
Red grouse and silver-studded
blue butterflies feed on young
heather
Woodland management
• Coppicing and Pollarding.
– Regular cutting of areas in a cycle increases
habitat diversity.
Coppicing
Pollarding
Coppicing and Pollarding
Farming
– After cutting, the increased light allows existing woodlandfloor vegetation such as bluebell and primrose to grow
vigorously.
– The open area is then colonised by many different animals
such as butterflies. As the coup grows up, the canopy
closes and it becomes unsuitable for these animals again –
but in an actively managed coppice there is always another
recently cut coup nearby, and the populations therefore
move around, following the coppice management.
Minsmere RSPB reserve, Suffolk.
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Rationale for wildlife conservation
Species inter-dependence
Problems caused by introduced species
Eradication of competitors
Legal protection of habitats and species
Captive breeding and release programmes
Habitat management, especially plagioclimaxes
The role of Governmental and Voluntary
organisations
Threatened Habitats in the UK
Environmental Studies
Threatened Habitats in the UK
There are many activities and land-use changes
which threaten the natural and traditional
habitats and landscapes.
There are two main reasons for this threat
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Habitat Destruction
Changes in Management Practice
Habitat Destruction
Habitat destruction which changes land use.
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Urban expansion,
Wetland drainage to create farmland,
Quarrying,
Flooding to create reservoirs
2. Management
Practices
There can be a change in
Management practice
•Intensification of agriculture:
•removal of
hedgerows,
•use of pesticides,
•Increased drainage,
•use of fertilizers,
•Abandoned coppiced woodland,
•Ungrazed grassland
Threatened Habitats
EXAMPLES
Broadleaf
woodland
– The climax community for
most of UK.
• Ploughing of pasture
change from broadleaf to
conifer plantations.
• deforestation for
agriculture/urban
expansion.
• Loss of species diversity and
wide age structure through
commercial management.
Wetlands
– Areas of shallow open water, marshes and bogs.
• eg drainage for farmland, urban developments or as a
result of aquifer over- exploitation
– Peat bogs exploited for garden soil conditioner
Heathland
– Infertile sand/gravel
soils.
• eg urban expansion,
conifer plantations,
golf courses
Hedgerows
– Field boundaries (relict
woodland or deliberately
planted).
• Removal for field enlargement,
road widening.
• Replaced with fences
• Lower/thinner to reduce
maintenance costs
Chalk Grassland
– Dry, shallow, alkaline
soils.
Converted to
• arable
• conifer plantations
• reduced grazing allowing
scrub encroachment
Hay Meadows
– Grasslands harvested
for livestock feed after
annual wildflowers
have produced seed.
Land can be ‘improved’
by use of fertilisers,
weedkillers and cutting
for silage.
Coastal Habitats
– Estuaries, sand-dunes, beaches, rocky shores.
Damaged by
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Port developments
Recreation and tourism
Coastal defences
Sewage
Oil and industrial pollutants
Conservation Abroad
Environmental Studies
Conservation Abroad
You should have brief knowledge of
–the main ecological features,
–importance to humans,
–threats
–conservation efforts
for the following ecosystems
–Tropical Rainforests
–Coral Reef
–Antarctica
Tropical Rainforest
Main ecological features
High productivity and biodiversity, climatic
stability.
Importance to humans
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Timber, wildlife conservation, medicines,
climate control, carbon sequestration,
soil conservation, catchment
management, indigenous peoples.
Threats
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Agricultural expansion, unsustainable
timber exploitation, mineral extraction,
HEP schemes, climate change
Conservation efforts
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Protected areas
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Korup rainforest, Cameroon;
Rio Bravo rainforest Belize
Sustainable management
Certified by the Forest Stewardship
Council (FSC) and Smartwood
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eg Selective logging, replanting with
native species, seed trees left
Coral Reef
Main ecological features
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Coral polyps with symbiotic algae requiring warm, clear,
shallow water with high light levels and constant salinity.
Importance to humans
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Wildlife conservation, fisheries, coastal erosion protection,
medicines, tourism.
Threats
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eg physical damage by anchors, rubbish, swimmers and
divers;
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unsustainable fishing – overfishing, dynamite, cyanide;
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coral souvenirs;
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increase in suspended sediment from soil erosion on land
and dredging;
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climate change causing raised temperatures, sea-level rise
and ‘bleaching’;
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pollution, eg oil, pesticides, fertilisers, litter.
Conservation efforts
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Protected areas
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eg Great Barrier Reef National Park, Australia
Management practices
eg Fixed mooring buoys, anchoring ban, diver education,
fishing controls, control of
agriculture – soil erosion, agrochemicals, ban on coral
removal
Antarctica
Main features
• Large landmass with unique climate and seasonal changes, surrounded by highly
productive ocean.
Importance to humans
• Wildlife conservation, symbolic importance to humans as ‘the last unspoilt
continent’.
Threats
• Climate change, uncontrolled tourism, litter, oil pollution, overfishing, whaling,
mineral exploitation
Conservation efforts
• Antarctic Treaty
• No territorial claims recognised
• No resource exploitation
• No military activities
• Waste removal
• Tourism controls