Northumberland - It's a Dragonflies Life

26th August, 2008

The Forestry Commission has totted up a century milestone in its bid to give the North East more liquid assets. Over 100 ponds have now been built in 62,000-hectare (155,000-acre) Kielder Water and Forest Park, Northumberland, as part of a push to broaden wildlife habitats.

The work has been done over the past three decades,providing a timely boost to wildlife. Two ponds have already been rated as of outstanding conservation value for having more than nine species of dragonfly, including the Lesser Emperor, a rarity, and the Southern Hawker. One of these prime locations is Bellcrag Flow, near Wark, part of the Border Mires Restoration Project. Earlier this year experts also made Northumberland's first ever breeding record of the Broad-bodied Chaser dragonfly in forest ponds near Wark.

The creature generally prefers southern climes, but seems to have found a niche in the north thanks to the habitat creation project. Elsewhere, 23 ponds have been created in Hamsterley Forest, near Bishop Auckland, seven in Chopwell Wood, near Gateshead, and eight in woodlands around Rothbury. Four of these are also highly rated for dragonflies.Tom Dearnley, Forestry Commission Ecologist, said: “Wildlife thrives when there’s a good mix of habitats such as forest,water and heath, and we are seeing the fruits of our pond building labours."

A range of ponds have been sculpted with various depths and profiles, meeting the diverse needs of aquatic plants and animals. Most of the work has been done with excavators, but at Kielderhead National Nature Reserve, explosive charges were used to blast water-filled peaty craters for use by wading birds like Golden plover and Dunlin. Gordon Simpson, a wildlife consultant with the Forestry Commission, added: “It’s amazing how quickly Mother Nature takes a grip on the ponds once they have been built. Many woodland ponds become parched in dry summers leaving wildlife high and dry. Insects, herons, wild fowl, otters and frogs are all benefiting from the work we’ve been doing.”