Wildlife News for December
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2012 11:53 am
Ash Dieback Disease in Cheshire:
So far, the Cheshire region appears to be disease-free, according to the Cheshire Wildlife Trust who recently declared an 'all clear' survey of their key nature reserves in the region that contain Ash trees. In the UK as a whole, cases have reached almost 300, with more than half in mature woodlands.
Although a suspected recent case in Knutsford has not been confirmed by the Forestry Commission, the agency has recorded cases as close as North Wales and in Shropshire near Telford.
Government plans include maintaining the current import ban on ash trees, a targeted management strategy for dealing with infected trees by spring next year, and advice on how to tackle potentially infected leaf litter.
Work will also step up across the UK and elsewhere in Europe to speed-up research into possible resistance to the disease that may exist in existing healthy ash trees.
It is thought the public could also play a key role in monitoring the spread of the disease from 2013, and identification techniques and training packages for volunteers are also in development.
Jacki Hulse, head of estates and land management with Cheshire Wildlife Trust said "It's critical that the cure mustn't be worse than the cause, and the government seems to be taking a science-led approach with ecology at its heart - a move that the Wildlife Trust welcomes."
So far, the Cheshire region appears to be disease-free, according to the Cheshire Wildlife Trust who recently declared an 'all clear' survey of their key nature reserves in the region that contain Ash trees. In the UK as a whole, cases have reached almost 300, with more than half in mature woodlands.
Although a suspected recent case in Knutsford has not been confirmed by the Forestry Commission, the agency has recorded cases as close as North Wales and in Shropshire near Telford.
Government plans include maintaining the current import ban on ash trees, a targeted management strategy for dealing with infected trees by spring next year, and advice on how to tackle potentially infected leaf litter.
Work will also step up across the UK and elsewhere in Europe to speed-up research into possible resistance to the disease that may exist in existing healthy ash trees.
It is thought the public could also play a key role in monitoring the spread of the disease from 2013, and identification techniques and training packages for volunteers are also in development.
Jacki Hulse, head of estates and land management with Cheshire Wildlife Trust said "It's critical that the cure mustn't be worse than the cause, and the government seems to be taking a science-led approach with ecology at its heart - a move that the Wildlife Trust welcomes."