"The second day of the inaugural Grassland Conservation
Conference split into two very interesting field meetings.
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Bill Grayson discussing grazing
calcareous grassland at Ingleborough NNR
Image: A. Lyons |
The Upland Calcareous Grassland Workshop was organised by
Edge Hill University’s Ashley Lyons and kindly hosted by Natural England at
Colt Park Barn, Ingleborough. The workshop set out to discuss the impacts of
management of upland calcareous grassland on a range of taxa and to enable
evidence based research findings to be disseminated to conservation
practitioners and policy makers.
The workshop kicked off with results from Ashley’s completed
PhD project which examined the impacts of contrasting grazing management on
plants, spiders and carabid beetles in upland calcareous grasslands. Ashley
explained the importance of maintaining a range of management treatments
(including no grazing at all) across the landscape to ensure suitable habitat
is available for declining carabid beetle and rare spider species.
Interestingly, Ashley’s research showed that plant species composition,
richness or structural complexity doesn’t differ between areas grazed by sheep
or cattle as long as the stocking intensity is the same, a result also
reflected by the invertebrates studied. Even the ungrazed calcareous grasslands
had similar plant species richness, though the species composition of plants
and invertebrates was different from grazed areas. If you’d like to read more
about the study check out Ashley’s paper.
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Colin Newlands discusses grazing: behind the
net fence is ungrazed calcareous grassland
Image: A. Lyons |
Colin Newlands, Natural England’s Senior Reserve Manager for
Ingleborough, then talked about the management of the NNR and the importance of
continuing research in informing management decisions. Colin also discussed the
successful relationship built with Bill Grayson’s Morecambe Bay Conservation
Grazing Company, a model which could surely benefit conservation elsewhere.
Bill Grayson gave an interesting overview of how his cattle
are used in an organic system to graze a number of SSSIs across the North West
of England, growing slowly on species rich semi-natural grasslands with the
aims of helping conservation and producing quality beef from healthy animals.
Bill explained that as his cattle mature at around 5 or 6 years old they are
considered cull animals by the market and as such they aren’t sold as meat for
the table. Rather, Bill’s beef goes to producing high quality baby food!
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Limestone pavement on High Brae
Image: A. Lyons |
The group then headed out to visit a site that featured in
Ashley’s research and is grazed by Bill’s cattle. The group spent time in
different parts of the 90 ha field discussing how cattle have helped with the
establishment of plant species such as bird’s eye primrose and frog orchid.
There was also discussion on how the structure of the vegetation, along with
the spiders and beetles that live amongst it, are influenced by the disturbance
of cattle. There was also an opportunity to see an area that has been ungrazed
for over 20 years, the lack of scrub encroachment sparked interesting
conversation. The ungrazed area is separated from the cattle grazed field by a
sheep net fence, the side where the cattle graze has a number of young hazel
saplings growing, whilst the ungrazed side of the fence has no such
regeneration, a pattern Ashley has observed in several ungrazed areas of upland
calcareous grassland. This probably occurs because when left without grazing
the sward becomes dominated by grasses (usually blue moor grass) and develops a
thick layer of thatch that together shade out other species. Despite this
competitive advantage that may hinder the establishment of some plant species,
Ashley pointed out that these ungrazed areas are a vitally important part of
the landscape for some very rare spider species.
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Wigan Flashes Meadow
Image: M. Allen |
The workshop concluded with a discussion on proposed
management recommendations made from the results of Ashley’s research, an
evidence based document that will be presented to national nature conservation
organisations with the aim of highlighting the importance of considering
invertebrate responses, in addition to plant responses, to management when
changing management practices in upland calcareous grasslands.
Those with an interest in lowland grassland conservation
joined Edge Hill University’s Elizabeth Sullivan and the Lancashire Wildlife
Trust’s Wigan Project Officer Mark Champion on a visit to Wigan Flashes, a site
developed on ex colliery shale and Cutacre Pasture, a reserve created five
years ago and managed now with a herd of longhorn cattle.
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First Eyebright found on
Wigan Flashes
Image: Mark Champion |
Discussion at Wigan Flashes centred on the botanical
diversity of the meadows which are managed by annual cutting for hay, the urban
location of the meadows means grazing isn’t possible. The meadows were created
twenty years ago with a layer of topsoil over the colliery shale and addition
of MG5 seed mix. After being abandoned for several years after sowing, the
meadows became rank grassland. Mark’s intervention with mowing over the last 18
years has increased botanical diversity and led to a community close to
Rodwell’s MG5 description. Interestingly, one of the five meadows has a
different plant community compared to the rest despite having the same
management since their creation. Suggestions from the group around soil
conditions have prompted Mark to send some soil for analysis, something that
revealed similar soil conditions among the meadows 18 years ago. It will be
interesting to hear the result this time around.
The meeting even found the first eyebright every recorded in
the meadows along with blackening wax cap, a further reminder that nature
doesn’t always require pristine countryside to thrive.
Whilst at Cutacre Pasture, an area a little on the wet side
and grazed at a low intensity by cattle, the debate was about rush pasture
versus grasslands such as MG8. Whilst each has their own botanical value
broader management outcomes, such as habitat for breeding birds, drove the
direction of the discussions.
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The group at Wigan Flashes
Image: M. Allen |
Mark Champion said of the conference “I have really enjoyed
the discussions that have developed over the last couple of days at the Grassland
Conservation Conference. The visit to Wigan Flashes and Cutacre Pasture led to
some quite radical management recommendations that challenge the status quo and
will be useful to management of the meadows going forward.”
Both field visits were undoubtedly very enjoyable and an excellent
opportunity for academics, practitioners and farmers to discuss grassland
conservation management. The visits rounded off an excellent couple of days and
helped to achieve the aims of the Grassland Conservation Conference.
