Aren't the Broads Brilliant ! Biodiversity: Winners and Losers

The Broads A member of The National Park family

Roman timesToday

Created by drainage and peat digging © Mike Page

Biodiversity > 11,000 species > 1,500 of conservation concern 65 depend on the Broads 5 species lost per decade

Our environment is changing

Potential flooding

Pressures

Pressures Hotter drier summers Warmer, wetter winters Sea level rise Extreme weather events – frequency and intensity

Migratory birds not arriving from Africa (cuckoo, nightingale) Plants affected by drought - habitats change Examples

15 species of butterflies have spread since 1970s They appear earlier and have an extra generation during the summer Examples

How to adapt ? Those species most suited to the new environment will flourish. E.g. If salt water incursions increase and the Broads becomes more brackish, sensitive freshwater fish species will be killed.

But brackish water species will flourish

Workshop Top Tips Features that may allow / prevent adaptation What habitats do the species live in? – Fresh / salt / brackish water – Restricted / rare habitats – Generalists (species that occur in many habitats) Will this habitat be affected by climate change? – Drying out / flooding – More salt water Will their food or predators be affected?

Your Task Using the resources provided, and your own knowledge and judgement, decide how the species populations will respond to climate change, in terms of distribution and abundance. 3 groups, each group will have 5 species Each species may be winner or loser as a result of climate change 1.Research each species, decide how it may be affected by climate change 2.Imagine climate change has happened (100 years in future) 3.Consider where it might be found in the Broads

Species to find out about: Group 1 Fen orchid Brown rat Water lily Seaweed (eel grass) Otter Group 2 Herring gull Grey seal Eel Natterjack toad Bittern Group 3 Little egret Fen raft spider Bats Swallowtail butterfly Tentacled lagoon worm

Don’t go on to the next slides until the groups have had a chance to think and do the task.

The results

Winners Brown rat Herring gull Little egret Grey seal ? Seaweed – eel grass? Tentacled lagoon worm ? Otter ? Eel ? Losers Swallowtail butterfly Fen orchid Fen raft spider Natterjack toad Water lily ? Bittern? Bats ?

The next 3 slides summarise possible impacts to help work out the winners and losers...

Group 1 Winner or loser? Fen orchid LFragile population - needs clean calcareous water Threatened by: drought increased acid rain inundation from polluted water or sea water lack of management Brown rat WVery adaptable to different conditions Eats a wide variety of food Can breed rapidly when conditions are right Water lily?LNeeds pretty good water quality Can cope with range of water depths but not floods Cannot cope with salty conditions Seaweed – eel grass ?WNeeds salt water and tidal water Could expand rapidly if conditions right Prone to pollution/ too much nutrient Otter?WLocal populations thrive in freshwater though elsewhere in the UK they live on the coast Needs clean water and can cope with variable levels Eats various prey but needs healthy populations.

Group 2 Winner or loser? Herring gull WAssociated with the sea, but now moving inland Able to eat a wide variety of prey (and scavenge) Nest in a variety of locations Being able to fly they can escape adverse conditions Grey seal ?WLive in salt water and need good prey levels If sea levels continue to rise, more water will become salty giving new opportunities Young - born in winter - vulnerable to more storms Eel ?WStart life in the sea and move to freshwater and wetlands as they grow Often move to new areas in times of floods Eat various prey but need clear passage to/fr the sea Natterjack toad LVery specialised - lives in wet areas that tend to dry out Can’t compete with other toads and therefore has restricted conditions Variable rainfall and salt inundation will kill them off Can have masses of offspring if right conditions exist Bittern ?LNeed large areas of undisturbed reedbed and freshwater; Vulnerable to changing water levels flooding out the nest and losing that year’s youngster.

Group 3 Winner or loser? Little egret WSpreading through England from the south v possibly linked to warming conditions Can find prey in fresh and salt water Can fly away from adverse conditions Fen raft spider LHighly specialised spider - needs good quality, calcareous water with associated plants Susceptible to flooding and salt water Drought conditions restrict them Bats ?LBats hibernate so longer periods of warmer weather could increase insect numbers and so help them Drought conditions generally restrict insects Flooding is difficult for them - tho they can fly away Swallowtail butterfly LNeeds milk parsley for their caterpillars - this is restricted to suitable freshwater fens (vulnerable to salt water incursion and flooding and drought) Can fly away but limited by lack of suitable wetlands Tentacled lagoon worm ?WTiny bristle worm lives in mud tubes in estuaries Seems to need brackish conditions Can’t tolerate too much salt or pollution or changes in currents. More brackish conditions are likely, but the currents or too much salt might not help