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10
Historic Gardens 2010
BCD Special Report
The small stone-lined ponds in the gardens
continue to support breeding amphibians, so
any work such as masonry repairs, vegetation
clearance and cleaning are carried out during
winter. During the amphibian breeding season
brick ramps are temporarily placed into two of
the stone-lined garden ponds that have vertical
sides. The ramps allow young amphibians
to leave the ponds and are subsequently
removed towards the end of summer when
young amphibians have left the pond.
Management of the surrounding gardens
has been adapted to reduce the risk of harm
to newts. Structural repairs and maintenance
are carried out during spring and early
summer when newts are in the breeding
ponds. The grasslands surrounding the pond
are kept short throughout the year to deter
newts from using this habitat for dispersal.
Flowerbeds next to the pond are planted with
perennial plants and mulched with wood
chips to minimise the need for soil cultivation
and to reduce the risk of disturbance
to newts. The gardens are managed
organically, so the risk of water pollution and
amphibian poisoning has been removed.
With careful timing and appropriate
techniques, the aesthetic and ecological value
of Brackenhurst’s dew pond has been restored.
The dew pond is once again an attractive and
key feature of the gardens. The ecological value
of the gardens (including the dew pond) has
been recognised by its designation as a County
Wildlife Site and the population of the newts,
now estimated to be greater than 2,000 adults,
is considered to be of regional importance.
The pond also supports a diverse range of
plants, nesting wildfowl, foraging bats, and at
least eight dragonfly and damselfly species.
Notes
1
P Williams et al,
The Pond Book: A Guide
to the Management and Creation of Ponds,
Pond Conservation Trust, Oxford, 1999
2
E Agate and A Brooks,
Waterways
and Wetlands: A Practical Handbook
,
BTCV, Reading, 1997
3
P Williams et al,
Lowland Pond Survey
1996
, DoETR, London, 1998
4
JF Wright et al, ‘Macro-invertebrate
Frequency data for the RIVPACS III
sites in Great Britain and their
use for conservation evaluation’,
Aquatic Conservation: Marine and
Freshwater Ecosystems
, 6, 1996
5
The UK list of priority habitats can
be viewed online at www.ukbap.
6
The Conservation (Natural Habitats &c)
Regulations
, HMSO, London, 1994
Useful Contacts
County Wildlife Trusts – you can find your
county trust by searching The Wildlife
Trust’s website:
The Pond Conservation Trust: see
County Biological Records Centres – you can
find species records for your local area by
searching the local records centre pages on
the website of the National Federation for
Biological Recording:
.
Mark Woods
BSc, MIEEM is a senior
ecologist at Baker Shepherd Gillespie LLP
and is responsible for providing ecological
consultancy to a diverse range of projects
for clients. His interests include habitat
management and restoration, phytosociology,
the population dynamics of the great
crested newt and environmental education.
Email
.
Contemporary photographs were provided by Neville Davey
CBiol MSB CEnv MIEEM (lecturer, Nottingham Trent
University) and archive photographs were kindly supplied
by Nottingham Trent University.
The boathouse and willow-pattern bridge at the east end of the dew pond three years after restoration. Marginal vegetation has developed further, but the channel is being annually cleared of
floating and submerged vegetation to provide male great crested newts with sufficient open water to display to females during courtship. (Photo: Neville Davey)