BBC Wildlife - UK (2020-04)

S

toneAgepeoplewerethefirstto

quarrybuildingstone.Theyalso

exploitedclaystomakepottery

andopenedminesforflint,

startinga longhistoryofextraction

activitiesbyhumankind.Overthecourse

ofthefollowingmillennia,rightupto

presentday,ourinsatiabledemand

forrock,sand,gravelandother

mineralshasseenthesevaluable

materialscommandeeredin

evergreaterquantities

fortheconstruction

ofeverythingfrom

buildings

toroads.

Though

it may

appearpurelydestructive,allthisdigging

hascreatedfantasticopportunitiesfor

Britain’swildlife.Twospeciesofbird,the

sandmartinandlittleringedplover,are

closelyassociatedwithfreshlyturned-over

ground– theformernestinginsandbanks

andthelatteronopenareasofshingle

orpebbles.Solitaryminingbees,wasps

andbeetlesareamongthemanyother

examples.Meanwhile,disuseddigsites

thathavefilledwithwaterarehometo

dragonflies,waterfowl,amphibiansand

fish.Areassurroundingthesepoolscan

bemarshy,scrubbyorlightlywooded,

whilenearbyslopes,slagheapsand

artificial‘dunes’areoftenfestooned

withwildflowersandbuzzingwithlife.

Ourislandshavea complexand

convoluted geology, so are relatively

wellendowedwithmineralassets.Asa

result,theUKcurrentlyhasmorethan

2,000activeminesandquarries.Butthe

numberofabandonedpitsandquarries

is thoughttobefarhigher.

Formerlyconsideredlittlemorethan

uglyscarsonthelandscape,thesederelict

areasarenowknowntobewildlifehavens.

Butit wasn’tuntiltheearly1980sthat

surveyworkbyecologistsbegantoreveal

howthelossof‘geologicalassets’hasbeen

compensatedforbythearrivalofa suiteof

‘biologicalassets’.Muchofthiscolonising

wildlifehasbeenseekingrefugefrom

agriculturalintensificationandrampant

urbanisationinthesurroundingland.

So,what’sthereasonfortheremarkable

wildlifeinterestatthesebrownfieldsites?

One key factor is the greater variety of

16 BBCWildlife April 2020

WILDLIFE WATCHING

InhisseriesofgreatplacestowatchwildlifeintheUK,thestarofBBCOne’s

TheOneShowthismonthtakesalookatpost-industriallandscapes and

the surprising benets they hold for a range of species.

MIKE DILGER’S

QUARRIESAND

PITS IN APRIL