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Archives for August 2023

Reptiles

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Written by Jade Walton, Transforming Lives Trainee

In the UK, there are three resident snake species, the grass snake, the smooth snake, and the adder. Each species has a characteristic that makes it unique. The adder is our only venomous species, the smooth snake our only constrictor, and the grass snake is (rather surprisingly) the only one to lay eggs. 

It is a common misconception that all reptiles reproduce by laying eggs, but besides the grass snake, the only other UK resident egg-laying reptile is the sand lizard. In our four other species, the females incubate their eggs internally, then ‘give birth’ to their young. This internal incubation gets rid of the need for nest making and laying on the eggs to keep them warm, which is particularly helpful given the unpredictable weather in the UK. 

The need to keep eggs warm is a major factor in grass snakes being absent from Scotland since they rely on warmer temperatures for incubation. The best place for grass snakes to lay their eggs is in piles of rotting vegetation, since the process of rotting creates heat. It is for this reason, grass snakes are often found in compost heaps. 

By the end of summer, the eggs will have hatched to reveal juvenile snakes that look exactly like their adult counterparts, except for being only a tenth of their length. 

The best way you can help your local grass snake population would be to have a compost heap in your garden for them to lay their eggs, or a wildlife pond in which they can hunt. 

You can find lots of tips on how to help grass snakes, as well as our other reptile and amphibian species here.

A Voice for Nature

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Scottish Environment LINK are celebrating ten years of the Nature Champions initiative with an exhibition at the Scottish Parliament!

The Nature Champions initiative exists to encourage MSPs to stand up for Scotland’s threatened and iconic species and habitats, through support from LINK member organisations. Many Nature Champions become a voice for their chosen species or habitat in the Scottish Parliament, and highlight them in debates, or through Parliamentary motions and questions.

Since its launch in 2013, the initiative has gone from strength to strength, with over 173 MSPs over the past decade becoming Nature Champions and asking hundreds of Parliamentary questions and motions in support of their species or habitats.

‘A Voice for Nature’ is an interactive exhibition highlighting some of the great work that has been achieved in these 10 years and will be on display outside the Scottish Parliament from the 28 August – 22 September.

Images and facts about Scottish species and habitats will be displayed alongside Nature Champions case studies and QR codes within the displays will link to short audio descriptions, using the voices of MSP Nature Champions to share information about species and habitats – thereby being a ‘voice for nature’ in the exhibition itself.

Find out more info HERE.

Great British Beach Clean

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This month is host to the annual citizen-science event of the Great British Beach Clean, hosted by Marine Conservation Society. Communities of volunteers from across the country head towards their nearest beaches to pick litter and collect data on the extent of damage caused to our local ocean environments.

This year’s cleanup takes place from the 15th to the 24th of September, and it’s easier than ever to get involved! Simply visit: www.mcsuk.org, where you can either join local cleaning events, or follow the step-by-step process to sign up and organise your own.

Events like these are crucial for ocean conservation efforts, (including protecting our ocean reptile species) as it’s an excellent way to spread awareness and recruit volunteers, but the data that is collected is also extremely important. MCS has used the data of previous years to campaign towards healthier ocean environments with successes such as the plastic bag charge, banning microplastics in personal care products, and better product labeling, in addition to supporting the petition for a tax on single-use plastics.

MCS post each year’s statistics from their data collection to the website, so it’s clear as day how drastic an impact that these events have. 2022 saw over 5,000 volunteers clean 4,000kg of litter from over 30 miles of beach. Please visit the website for the full breakdown, information on MCS’s conservation efforts, and how best to get informed and involved with the 2023 Great British Beach Clean!

Credit: Andrew Brown

Amphibians In Urban Environments

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Written by Kaitlin Oliver, Transforming Lives Trainee

Amphibians in urban environments face a range of challenges due to the altered habitat, pollution and human activities associated with urbanization.

Urban development often involves the destruction of natural habitats which lead to the loss of breeding and feeding grounds for amphibians. Additionally, any remaining natural areas can become fragmented with lakes and woodlands being closed off by housing, making it difficult for amphibians to move between suitable habitats. This can lead to isolated populations and reduced genetic diversity, causing inbreeding.

Amphibians heavily rely on aquatic environments for breeding and larval development. Urban environments can expose amphibians to various forms of pollution, including chemical pollutants from runoff, air pollution and noise pollution. Amphibians have permeable skin that makes them sensitive to pollutants, leading to developmental deformities, immune system suppression and reduced reproductive success. Urban areas often have altered water bodies like unhealthy ponds, ditches and drainage systems that may be contaminated with pollutants, have fluctuating water levels, or lack suitable vegetation. These conditions can negatively impact amphibian survival rate and their larval survival.

Amphibians such as frogs and toads rely on using water sources such as lakes, rivers, forest ponds and garden ponds. Newts especially rely on healthy ponds to breed in. If you have space, adding a pond to your garden will not only help amphibians, but will also massively improve the lives of a variety of wildlife. Froglife has a booklet that you can download called ‘Just add water’ on our website if you are interested in building a pond suitable for amphibians.

Designing urban infrastructure with consideration for amphibians can make a significant difference. For example, creating artificial wetlands, amphibian-friendly green roofs, creating wildlife corridors, maintaining natural water bodies, implementing wildlife-friendly landscaping practices and constructing road barriers or tunnels to reduce road mortality can all provide fantastic habitats and mitigate the impacts of urbanization.

Citizen science is very important as it can help monitor the health and distribution of amphibians. If you have a pond that amphibians breed in or visit, please use our free Dragon Finder App to report your sightings. Roads and vehicles pose a significant threat to amphibians in urban areas, so another way you can help amphibians is through the Toads on Roads project, where you assist toads in your area with their spring migration journey crossing roads.

Urbanization poses numerous challenges for our declining populations of amphibians, however, there are opportunities for conservation and education. By implementing thoughtful planning, mitigation measures, and public engagement, it’s possible to create more amphibian-friendly urban landscapes and help protect these vital components of biodiversity.

 

The Life Cycle of a Newt

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Written by Ellia Cobb, Transforming a Lives Trainee

During early spring, when the weather starts to warm up male newts display a courtship dance to the females where he will fan, whip, and wave his tail to attract the female. If he is successful, the female will allow him to fertilize her eggs and begin laying them. Each egg is laid individually on the underside of a leaf on the surface of a pond, the leaf is then folded over the egg to protect it. The eggs take 2-3 weeks to fully develop and hatch into larvae.

Great crested newt egg folded inside a leaf

The newt larvae will stay in the pond until they have developed and undergone metamorphosis, during which the larvae will develop legs and lungs which allow them to breathe and live on land. Before this stage the larvae have feathered external gills like those of an axolotl which are then absorbed during metamorphosis. Once this is complete, they will leave the water to live terrestrially. At this stage they are juveniles.

On land, juveniles will hunt for insects, worms and slugs and spend most of their time hidden in warm, damp places (underneath logs, rocks, and scrub) during the summer. From October the newts will brumate (taking advantage of warmer winter days to forage), they don’t reach sexual maturity until 2-4 years old and can live a few more years once matured.

Once the newts are mature and the weather starts to warm up again, during early spring, the newts will take to the pond in search of a mate to then continue the cycle all over again. 

Recycle Week

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Written By Chloe Davey, Transforming Lives Trainee

As we enter September we become more aware of the changes that Autumn brings. Colourful leaves will fall to the ground as our animal friends will be busy preparing for Winter. It’s important to be aware that many critters will start collecting and storing food, however there may be items that they come across that can be harmful: bottles, cans, you name it! Many people forget to recycle their items once they’ve finished using them so, between the 19th and 25th of this month, Recycle Week encourages recycling for wildlife and the general health of our planet.

Did you know that recycling has been encouraged for many years, it was especially prominent during the late 1700’s with the construction of railroads and infrastructure. As we move along in time, the concern for recycling seems to have slowly dwindled. Thankfully, in 2015, Recycle Week was created in hopes of increasing people’s awareness of the importance of recycling. Recycling has an enormous impact on protecting our environment to make it a better, healthier place to live. This includes saving millions of trees, water, energy and other natural resources.

There are also many ways you can participate and help support others in recycling too. It is important to know what can be recycled, this would include: newspapers, magazines, aluminium cans, cardboard boxes and plastic bottles. Depending on where you live, green/blue bins are the designated bins specifically made for recyclable objects, you may even have one or two at home. Social media is also such a powerful tool to help inspire and influence others. You can post pictures or videos of yourself recycling with your friends and family, or if you are a little camera shy, you can post facts about the importance and benefits of recycling instead.

To quote Dr. Seuss’ Lorax, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”