Recently we have had reason to celebrate and think to the future, as RSPB Cymru and Severn Trent Water have come to an agreement which sees the RSPB take on a long term Farm Business Tenancy lease of Tŷ-Llwyd farm. Full story can be read HERE.
View from Yellow Trail looking over Dam towards Ty Llwyd Farm (Photo by Gavin Chambers)
The agreement will give us more control of how the farm is run which, while working with Natural Resources Wales (NRW), will help develop a more sustainable grazing program across the reserve. With the number of important wildlife species and habitats found at Lake Vyrnwy the grazing is vitally important as over or under-grazing can dramatically change the flora and fauna which could lead to the loss of certain species.
The Lake Vyrnwy Estate is important for species such as Hen Harrier, Merlin, Curlew and also Black Grouse which is the most southerly population in Wales. Other important species found are Cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus), Lesser Twayblade (Listera cordata), Ashworth’s Rustic (Xestia ashworthii), Welsh Clearwing (Synanthedon scoliaeformis) and one of Britain’s rarest ground beetles - Trechus rivularis.
Cloudberry (Photo by Gavin Chambers)
Areas of woodland are also part of the agreement which will allow more management to help species such as Willow Tit. To improve the woodlands for our native woodland birds like Pied Flycatcher and Wood Warbler, the removal of non-natives such as conifers and rhododendron would be a very good start.
Plant of the Week
Common Rhododendron / Rhododendronau gwyllt (Rhododendron ponticum) (Photo by Gethin Elias)
The Evil beauty
The plant is responsible for the destruction of many native habitats and the abandonment of land throughout the British Isles. The reason for this is simple. Where conditions are suitable, Rhododendron will out compete most native plants. It will grow to many times the height of a person, allowing very little light to penetrate through its thick leaf canopy. This effectively eliminates other competing native plant species which are unable to grow due to insufficient light. This in turn leads to the consequent loss of the associated native animals. Rhododendron seeds are tiny and hence wind dispersed. Each flower head can produce between three and seven thousand seeds, so that a large bush can produce several million seeds per year. Although not all the seeds will grow successfully, but given the right conditions, a good many will germinate.
Introduction to Britain: Rhododendron ponticum is native to countries in the western and eastern Mediterranean such as Spain, Portugal and Turkey and also occurs eastwards through Asia into China. It is not native to Britain, but was first introduced in the late 18th Century. It became especially popular on country estates in Victorian times, providing ornamental value, as well as cover for game birds.
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