WILDLIFE OF NESS: A BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOT Philip Putwain University of Liverpool and Ecological Restoration Consultants Carl Clee Liverpool World Museum
Acknowledgements Barbara Allen and Frances Lee for fabulous photographs; the whole group of Wilderness volunteers and the 60 Bioblitz experts who undertook the species audit last June 2014 Tim Baxter Ness Botanist Gill Haynes Ecological Restoration Consultants Agnes Escudier Ex-Volunteer, editor Nature Trail booklet
Cheshire countryside wildlife desert: view from Beeston castle
Contrast domestic gardens with farmland
Domestic gardens are an important resource for biodiversity Total area of domestic gardens in UK: 433,000 hectares Total area of National Nature Reserves: 90,000 hectares Gardens comprise 19-27% of the entire urban area in 5 cities: Sheffield 23% 14% ponds; 48% trees > 3m tall Accounts for 25% of all trees outside woodlands
The Importance of Ness Botanic Gardens: Biodiversity Hotspot Whole of Ness Botanic Gardens is a biodiversity hotspot for Wirral and west Cheshire Important for bees, insects generally, small mammals and butterflies, good habitat for birds and bats Habitat for amphibians and aquatic invertebrates
Ness Gardens: diversity of habitats Woodland Ponds Herbaceous bordersd 64 acres = 26 ha
Diversity of habitats blend horticultural and ecological Wildflower Meadow grassland Bare ground and rock: open habitat
Ness Botanic Gardens habitat features Individual trees - Black PoplardBlack Ancient hedgerow adjacent to sunken lane many tree species
The Wilderness Project
Aims of the Wilderness Project AIM 1: Creation of wildlife friendly habitats that demonstrate best practices of sustainable development and landscape management AIM 2: Use of the area to add to the visitor experience and interpret science, conservation and wildlife management AIM 3: Management of the woody plant collections to promote their worldwide conservation and scientific importance
Creation of the wildflower meadow after deep ploughing in March 2008- starting point The plough has two mouldboards in order to achieve the full inversion Subsoil revealed: low soil fertility low phosphate
Deep ploughing March 2008 Archaeology checked Max plough depth 90-100cmx
WILDFLOWER MEADOW FIRST SPRING AND SUMMER 2008 Cornfield annuals dominant 98% of meadows present in 1930 s in the UK have now disappeared 23 species sown now over 100 recorded July 2008
JUNE 2009 Ness meadow becoming more grassy Papaver rhoeasp Viper s bugloss Common field poppy Echium vulgare
JULY 2010 Ness meadow Wild carrot becoming more abundant Daucus carota Perennial plants becoming common
2011 June ox-eye daisy Leucanthemum vulgaree July musk mallow Malva moschata
April 2014 cowslip Primula veris 2014 May 2014 yellow rattle Rhinanthus minor
Natural Colonisation by Common Spotted Orchid First appeared in 2014 Dactylorhiza fuchsii
Meadow management Cut, bale and remove hay in August Cut up with disc harrow in September Video
Recent developments Bee Hotel Hedgehog home
The Bioblitz what is it the aims Bio means life and Blitz means to do something quickly and intensively. A Bioblitz is a collaborative race against the clock to discover and record as many species of plants, animals and fungi as possible over a defined time period. A species audit snapshot 13-14 th June 2014. At Ness Botanic Gardens, this period was about 21 hours from 8.00pm Friday to 5.00pm Saturday. Drawback species and seasonal changes rare visitors
Bioblitzz Ness Botanic Gardens divided into a set of compartments Relates roughly with different types of habitat
Gardens identification base To assist in-the-field ID results and transfer to RECORD
Entering data on the day team from RECORD (Cheshire Biodiversity database)
Collecting specimens - methods Close inspection hand lens
Suction collecting of insects close to the ground - video
Aquatic invertebrates - video
Pea Mussels Ian Wallace Liverpool World Museum
Bioblitz audit results - summaryz 2208 records; 929 species Data compiled by RECORD Based on number of records
Insect species summary
Fungi Flowering plant Lower plant Mammals Birds Reptiles and Amphibians Fish Insects - Bees, ants and wasps Insects - Beetles Insects - Bugs Insects - Butterflies and moths Insects - Caddisflies Insects - Dragonflies Insects - Earwigs Insects - Lacewings Insects - Mayfly Insects - True Flies Snails and slugs Spiders Other invertebrates Total species count 250 Species total 200 150 100 50 0
Bioblitz results Invertebtrates solitary bees - Red Mason Bee Bee habitat exposed sandstone outcrop and old brickwork Predatory digger waspt
Butterflies at Ness Botanic Gardens 18 species of butterfly in total 10 species on Bioblitz day Large skipper on bramble Common Blue on vetch
Invertebrates Butterflies and Bumblebees Speckled Wood on common knapweed Comma on knapweed
Small Copper in the meadow
Wall butterfly first recorded in 2009 - subsequently in 2014 A declining species nationally Scarce in Cheshire and inland Wirral Dee coastline last stronghold in Cheshire
Orange Tip butterfly and larval food plant Cuckoo flower Cardamine pratensis Family Brassicaceae
White-tailed Bumblebee on spear thistle 8 species of bumblebee recorded in total over the past 6 years Photo Marcel Escudier Good for bumblebees: habitat diversity, low key management
Tree Bumble Bee Bombus hypnorum Recent colonising species good pollinator
Tree bumblebee rapid colonisation First record in the UK, Hampshire in 2001 First recorded in Cheshire in 2008 First recorded at Ness in 2013
Rare Bee Species -1 st record in Cheshire Wood-Carving Leaf-Cutter bee
Birds using Ness Botanic Gardens Chaffinch Jay Total no. of species = 84 recorded over a period of at least 10 years Sparrow Hawk Long-tailed tit Bioblitz day 44 species were recordedz
More birds using Ness Botanic Gardens Robin Fieldfare Goldfinch
Brown Long-Eared Bat Declining species historically- UK BAP spp. Summer roosts old buildings and trees
Brandt s Bat roost in old buildings Daubenton s Bat near water and tree roosts
Large Mammals Badger seen on night vision cam At least one active sett, possibly two
Photos all Richard Steel Large mammals
Small mammals Harvest Mouse Only 4 sites in Wirral- tall unmanaged grass habitat Colony first found in Sept 2012, 5 nests. 10 nests in Dec 2014
Wilderness trail booklet Available to purchase from the reception desk; cost 2.00e Pdf version available free to members of FONG by accessing; Wildernessdiary.blogspot.co.uk
Going forward with Wilderness The development Plan; Cheshire Local Botanical orchard Marshy fen Limestone grassland Wildlife Site
Acknowledgements Friends of Ness Gardens For continuing support of the project and for a contribution of 10,000 per annum over the past two years. Tim Baxter Botanist