Our newt conservation strategy
Our schemes have been carefully designed to offer numerous benefits to developers and planners, but ultimately to improve, protect, and enhance conservation for great crested newts.
That’s why together with our partners, the Amphibian and Reptile Conversation Trust, Freshwater Habitats Trust, and the Newt Conservation Partnership, we have developed a long-term, fully-funded landscape-scale conservation strategy for great crested newts – the first of its kind in the UK.
When developers enter our schemes, 100% of the money is used for scheme delivery providing large-scale habitat creation and long-term management and monitoring at compensation sites across the regions where we operate.
Great crested newt populations have declined dramatically in the UK over the last 70 years, largely due to a decrease in the extent and quality of aquatic and terrestrial habitat. Our work aims to reverse this trend by increasing the number of high-quality clean water ponds connected by suitable terrestrial habitat, creating a network of favourable habitats where newt populations can thrive. For every pond occupied by great crested newts that is lost through development, we create or restore at least four high-quality ponds, ensure suitable surrounding terrestrial habitat is in place and monitor the sites for at least 20 years.
Long-term monitoring and management
Not only do our schemes fund the creation and restoration of newt habitat, but they also pay for the long-term monitoring and management of both aquatic and terrestrial habitat.
For each pond constructed, we conduct a site assessment within six months of creation to address any issues early on in the process. We then monitor each compensation site annually to assess whether they have been colonised by great crested newts and are contributing towards a positive conservation status at a landscape-scale. Our monitoring programme involves eDNA and population size class assessments to determine occupancy levels at each site, alongside conducting surveys on the quality of the compensation site with use of the Habitat Suitability Index (HSI), viability assessments and general overviews of the extent and quality of habitat types.
Hundreds of clean water ponds have been created or restored for great crested newts across the regions in which we operate, and great crested newts have already been recorded in 84% of mature compensation sites created through the scheme. All of this is delivered by our partners at the Newt Conservation Partnership in collaboration with numerous landowners and managers across the regions, informed by expert advice and guidance from the Million Ponds Project Toolkit and Amphibian Habitat Management Handbook.
The End Result
Our schemes provide a quick, simple and certain solution, whilst ensuring a sustainable future for great crested newts.
We are proud to have delivered over £9 million towards conservation projects for newts and other species.
To find all our relevant downloadable resources and guidance, including our latest monitoring report, visit our Resources Hub.
