Whilst the Lower Derwent Valley is currently doing a fantastic job of being a floodplain, our amazing volunteers have been hard at work on the slightly drier ground of Skipwith Common NNR. Armed with bowsaws, loppers and plenty of enthusiasm, they’ve been busy cutting back young birch and pine saplings to keep the heathland areas open and thriving. This work is being undertaken to make sure the site is in favourable condition for some of the key species that can be found on the Common such as Woodlarks, Adders, Lizards, Marsh Gentians and Round-leaved Sundew, not forgetting the Nightjar, who flies all the way from Africa to spend the summer on the heath! 🌍🐦
So far, we’ve worked our way through several hectares, and we couldn’t have achieved this without our ever-growing volunteer crew, as well as the brilliant staff from WSP/FPRC Ecology and the Natural England north-east team, who swapped their desks for fresh air and made a huge difference with us at the end of last year 🌳🌲
Since the turn of this year, our hardy crew of volunteers have continued this work, with only a little bit left to finish now before the breeding season commences next month, and our attentions turn back to the Lower Derwent Valley – when (hopefully) the floodwater will have receded, and we may be busy carrying out flood damage repairs 🪚🪓🪛
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