New Newt Ponds in Herefordshire

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation is delighted to provide funding towards Herefordshire Amphibian and Reptile Team’s (HART) pond creation project in Brockhall Quarry. The location, in Stretton Sugwas, Herefordshire, is a former sand and gravel quarry, on Duchy of Cornwall land, which has been restored as a site for wildlife. Great crested newts are already present, but in a pond that is being overgrown with bulrushes and which may eventually dry out through succession. HART’s project has created three new ponds nearby, to increase the extent and quality of breeding habitat for this Biodiversity Action Plan species.

Will Watson, HART’s project leader, said ‘We’ve taken care to create ideal wildlife ponds. We’ve put in three ponds, rather than a single one, as pond clusters offer greater scope for wildlife. There are two large ponds and a smaller one. They all have gently sloping sides and irregular shapes, to maximise the number of aquatic microhabitats. We have even been able to install dragonfly basking beaches, using pea gravel from the former quarry workings. We will continue to monitor the site in future to check on the newts, but we fully expect them to colonise the new ponds.’

John Baker of Amphibian and Reptile Conservation added, ‘This is a great example of partnership working. Herefordshire Amphibian and Reptile Team has worked with the Duchy of Cornwall to produce a model amphibian conservation project. The Duchy of Cornwall has financially supported the project, but the pond creation funds have been topped up by Amphibian and Reptile Conservation’s Great Crested Newt Conservation fund and the Amphibian and Reptile Groups of the UK’s 100% Fund.’

Guidance and an application form for Amphibian and Reptile Conservation’s Great Crested Newt Conservation Grants are available on the ARC website.

For further information about ARG UK go to www.arguk.org

ARC Latest News

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation launched its snake campaign 'Sliding Scales' at the BBC Springwatch event in Southampton on 31 May. Since the launch the campaign website has received over 400 records of snakes from the UK public in one month!

The latest herpetological research shows that snake populations could be following amphibians and lizards down a path to global declines. Further research is urgently needed to understand what is happening.

ARC is asking people to send in snake sloughs (shed skins) that they find in the UK

To find out more, report your sightings and how to send us snake sloughs click here


Amphibian and Reptile Conservation has joined forces with England's conservation organisations and has issued an unprecedented warning about what the future would hold should the Government slash spending on conservation. Read more...


Hundreds of ponds funded by Biffaward. Read more...

Job Vacancy for a GIS and Data Entry officer

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation is looking to recruit a GIS & Data Officer, with good GIS mapping skills, to help carry out its species status assessments, assist with management of data structures and maintain volunteer records. To start as soon as possible.

A detailed Job Description can be found here and an Application Form here.

Opportunities to gain employment in amphibian and reptile conservation are few and far between so make sure you grab this opportunity to work with ARC - the UK's leading charity in this field.

Biodiversity Still in Decline

No matter how many dedicated organisations like Amphibian and Reptile Conservation try to halt the decline of our native species and habitats, the decline continues. According to IUCN (the International Union for Conservation of Nature) governments have failed to deliver commitments made in 2002 to reduce the global rate of biodiversity loss by 2010.
There have been some successes including designation of protected areas and the recovery of particular species. Amphibian and Reptile Conservation has had its own successes with the re-introduction of the pool frog and translocation of the sand lizard.
To find out more go to: www.iucn.org/iyb/about/biodiversity_crisis/

BBC Goes Wild

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation is supporting the BBC Wildlife Fund's Wild campaign. Lots of fun, so get involved. For more information go to: www.bbc.co.uk/wild/wild-ideas/

Ponds Increasing in Number, but Decreasing in Quality

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation is very concerned about the future of our ponds. The Countryside Survey Ponds Report from 2007 is the first national study of trends in pond quality in Great Britain.
To read the full report go to: http://www.countrysidesurvey.org.uk/pdf/reports2007/CS_UK_2007_TR7.pdf

New Species Unveiled

As Amphibian and Reptile Conservation continues to work towards conserving our native species, a range of new species have been found in Borneo! New species of amphibians and reptiles are being discovered all the time, emphasising the importance of these groups as contributing to global diversity.
See the new species at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8637951.stm