New Biodiversity Audit Reveals all!

The annual biodiversity report for the College estate has just been written and it makes encouraging reading. As staff and students have discovered this year, the Moulton College estate continues to hold an array of interesting terrestrial and aquatic communities. The provision of the integrated Entry Level Stewardship plan continues to have a net positive effect on biodiversity, especially the infield options including pollen and nectar and wild bird seed mixes.

The conservation focus from now will be on enhancing existing priority habitat patches including Tank Field Willow Coppice, Briscoe’s Spinney and the network of College ponds. The discovery of great crested newts in three ponds on the eastern margins of the estate suggests that the management of these lentic water bodies should be prioritised to ensure the long-term survival of extant metapopulations. The bioblitz event in the autumn revealed 105 plant species, and this was augmented by the discovery of bee orchids near Pitsford Quarry (see image below).

Thanks go to all the students who have contributed to this inventory - you know who you are, it's time to take a bow!