news and events
SBP becomes a partner of 2020VISION
We are delighted to announce our partnership with 2020VISION, the UK’s most ambitious nature photography-based conservation initiative ever! 20 of the country’s top wildlife and nature photographers have for the first time, come together with leading conservation partners to document the value of restoring the UK’s fragmented ecosystems and the life-support services they provide. Since autumn 2010, this elite Phototeam has been carrying out 20 flagship assignments which clearly demonstrate the link between a healthy, robust natural landscape and the well being of local people.
The Suffolk Sandlings is one of the Assignment Locations - visit More Than Just A Heath >
2020VISION uses the motivational language of inspiring photography, a language in which everyone can find relevance. Find out more at www.2020V.org
Norfolk and Suffolk on track to form a Local Nature Partnership
Proposals to establish a Local Nature Partnership (LNP) for Norfolk and Suffolk are off to a strong start, with the news that a grant of £31,000 has been awarded to Norfolk County Council from Defra/Natural England. The funding will be used to support a range of “capacity building” activities over the next eight months, including:
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Dialogue with a wide range of organisations and interest groups about their expectations of a Local Nature Partnership;
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The organisation of a pilot “Business and Biodiversity Forum”, to explore the potential for conservation bodies to work more closely with local companies;
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The organisation of three, in-depth, stakeholder workshops, with the health sector, the marine sector and local community organisations;
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A feasibility study looking into the potential for expanding “visitor payback” schemes to benefit conservation. This concept has already been successfully trialled in some national parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The schemes encourage visitors to make voluntary donations to a fund, which is then used to support environmental and community projects in the local area;
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The preparation of a draft environmental vision for Norfolk and Suffolk.
Following the completion of these capacity building activities, it is envisioned that an application will be made to Defra to secure formal Local Nature Partnership status in summer 2012.
The proposed Local Nature Partnership will build on the strong foundations that have already been established by the Norfolk and Suffolk Biodiversity Partnerships, two effective and highly respected partnerships that have been operating at the county level for many years. The proposed LNP will look at the natural environment in its widest sense, and will seek to engage with a very diverse range of stakeholders, including:
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Health and wellbeing organisations
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Local businesses
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Tourism
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Local authorities
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Education
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Communities and the wider public
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Statutory agencies, such as the Environment Agency and Natural England
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Environmental charities, such as the Norfolk and Suffolk Wildlife Trusts
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Local landowners and farmers
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Local Record Centres
Scott Perkin, Co-ordinator for the Norfolk Biodiversity Partnership, said: “There are powerful reasons for bringing Norfolk and Suffolk together under the umbrella of a single LNP, including the cross-county nature of many of our landscapes and ecosystems, such as the Brecks and the Broads. Additionally, the proposed LNP boundary mirrors that of the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), which will help us to work with local businesses.”
Gen Broad, Suffolk Biodiversity Partnership Co-ordinator, added: “The Norfolk and Suffolk Biodiversity Partnerships have a long tradition of working together. The proposed LNP will build upon and strengthen our existing relationship, delivering benefits for both people and wildlife in our two counties.”
7th Annual Planning and Biodiversity Seminar 6 October 2011
Although SBP and Norfolk Biodiversity Partnership have been organising this popular event for planners for 7 years, it remains fresh and topical each year. In 2011, there were a record number of participants (more than 70) welcomed to the new British Trust for Ornithology venue in Thetford.
The aim of the event is to provide an overview of the latest national and county-level developments and best practice related to spatial planning, development control and biodiversity. It also provides an excellent opportunity for local authority staff to exchange experience and best practice examples at an inter-county level.
Mike Oxford of the Association of Local Government Ecologists (ALGE) focused on the Biodiversity Planning Toolkit. This innovative creative tool helps the planning community to contribute to the conservation, enhancement and sustainable use of bio- and geo-diversity. Animated scenarios on the interactive landscape include flying bats, swooping barn owls, active wind turbines and moving trains to bring the traditional website to life and clarify bio- and geo-diversity conservation issues.
The presentations covered a wide range of current topics. The presentations can be downloaded here as pdf files by clicking on the link: Implcations of the Localism Bill (Marie Smith, Forest Heath District Council), Natural England and Planning - new ways of working (Alison Collins), The role of local record centres in landscape scale projects and planning (Martin Horlock, NBIS), The new district ecologist post at Norfolk County Council (David White NCC), Biodiversity offsetting (Claire Lewis, Defra). Mike Oxford's morning update presentation.
New Issue of In Leaf out now.
Read it here and read the Wood Fuel Supplement here
Seaweed East Success!
A purple sponge discovered off the Norfolk coast is new to the UK, and possibly new to science.
The Wildlife Trusts and Seasearch East worked together to survey the seaweeds in Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, Durham and Northumberland over 10 days in early August. The survey team, including a marine biologist from the Museum of Ulster, a wild food expert, a botanist and volunteer divers, has identified 131 seaweeds, including four non-native species.
Samples collected from each of the 11 locations will be carefully identified, the results of which will give a great boost to our knowledge of marine life in Suffolk. The results of the survey will be used to identify areas of special wildllife interest off this coastline.
To view the unidentified purple sponge, visit the BBC website > . This exciting find made headline news in the BBC, Guardian, Telegraph, Express and the Metro! It has certainly created interest in the North Sea's marine life. Images and videos from the survey can be found on the Wildlife Trusts website at www.northseawildlife.org.uk
In Suffolk, the team surveyed the waters around the jetty on Orfordness. Out of interest, the team made a trip to the large saline lagoons on the Ness and were rewarded by finding large numbers of starlet sea anemones, one of the county's Biodiversity Action Plan species. Thank you to the National Trust, who generously hosted the event.
The survey was supported by Suffolk and Norfolk Biodiversity Partnerships, the Environment Agency, Marine Conservation Society, Durham Heritage Coast and Purling Transport.
Breckland Biodiversity Audit
Scientists are calling for radical new approaches to conservation following the first biodiversity audit of its kind.
Led by the University of East Anglia (UEA), with partners Natural England, the Forestry Commission, Norfolk and Suffolk Biodiversity Partnerships and County Councils, the Brecks Partnership, and Plantlife, the painstaking study pooled information on the plant and animal species recorded in Breckland - a special landscape of heathland, forest and farmland stretching across the Norfolk and Suffolk border.
In an unprecedented effort, the UEA team collated records for a huge variety of species identified in the region, from the smallest gnat and tiniest beetle, through to birds, plants and mammals. The researchers were astonished to discover that 28 per cent of the UK's BAP species were found in Breckland - an area covering only 0.4 per cent of land in the UK.
This collaborative study's innovative, evidence-based methodology offers a more targeted and dynamic approach to conservation - identifying what biodiversity is present in a region, where it is, and what it needs if it is to thrive.
With the help of over 200 naturalists, UEA collated nearly a million records, showing that some 12,500 species have been found in the region. Of these, more than 2,000 are of national conservation concern. The team went on to analyse the ecological needs of these 2,000 rare species, which allowed them to identify novel approaches for managing habitats to restore and protect this biodiversity. The report provides a manual for land managers, showing them what can be done to restore and conserve the unique biodiversity of the region.
"These exciting findings demonstrate beyond doubt what conservationists have long suspected - that Breckland is a unique region and vitally important hotspot for rare and threatened species, making it a key area for conservation within the UK," said Dr Paul Dolman of UEA's School of Environmental Sciences, who led the study. "Although much of what conservation has achieved is excellent, new approaches are urgently needed or we risk many of these species drifting towards extinction."
To find out more about the Breckland Biodiversity Audit, please click here To download the full report please click here (PDF 8 MB). The appendices are available as a separate document, please click here (PDF 2.7 MB).
Suffolk's traditional orchard survey
This exciting project involves people in their own communities not only helping biodiversity, but also learning how to grow their orchards in a sustainable, traditional way. By March 2013, the project aims to have mapped all the orchards surviving from the early 1900s, surveyed those orchards to establish their ecological value, restored some of the best and established at least four county collections to maintain Suffolk’s fruit varieties for the future.
Good progress has been achieved, with lots of interest from the media, although more surveyors are needed to complete the survey. Please let us know if you'd like to help!
Update on Suffolk's traditional orchard survey Dec 2010 (PDF 1.3 MB)
Swifts added to Suffolk's Biodiversity Action Plan
Swifts have been visiting the UK since Roman Times, providing a wonderful sight during the summer as they swoop screaming through the skies. However, the swift is now in trouble with numbers having declined by 47% over the past ten years. In view of this, swifts were recently added as a 'local character' species to the Suffolk plan. Suffolk Wildlife Trust are working on swift conservation across the county.
For further information about swifts and their conservation visit Swift Conservation and the RSPB.
Read about the work of SBP
SBP's leaflet, launched at our conference in November 2009, can be downloaded here.
Suffolk Biodiversity Partnership Newsletters
The Partnership has a regular 2-monthly newsletter highlighting the biodiversity work of partners and providing information about grants, conferences, project opportunities and events. The newsletter contents are shown under the title, click on the title itself to see the full newsletter. Each edition also contains an SBP update, local and national biodiversity information and What's On. The next newsletter is due early April 2012.
December 2011 (1.8 MB)
Surveying the Stour Valley for dormice, Suffolk hedgerow survey, Thorrington Park Pinewood, Barn owls in Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley, publication of the Broads Biodiversity Audit, Suffolk Community Barn Owls Project, "I'm a Good Dog" in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB and beyond, Norfolk and Suffolk Local Nature Partnership.
September 2011 (1.7 MB)
Reptiles in Ipswich, harvest mice, ground beetle studies in the Brecks, wet woodland mapping, Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley project news, Geosties in Suffolk, County Wildlife Sites, Seaweed East and Butterfly Notes. Partnership news: the 7th annual Planning and Biodiversity seminar, New & Old Orchards for Suffolk, publications of a bats and microturbines advice note, the discovery of a population of native crayfish, and Waveney and Suffolk Coastal Green Web projects.
June 2011 (926 Kb)
Swift conservation in Suffolk, Broads Biodiversity Audit, SWT's harvest mouse project, the RSPB's new Project Manager for the Brecks, Little terns in Suffolk, Plantlife activities, a Butterfly Spring, the Woodland Trust's Jubilee Woods project, Suffolk's last native crayfish population hit by plague, making a successful wildlife area at Castle Hill allotments in Ipswich and Suffolk ARG check for chytrid fungus in the county. Partnership news: Norfolk & Suffolk make a joint bid for Local Nature Partnership status, changes at the East of England Biodiversity Forum, Saving Suffolk's stag beetles project, further publicity for the Brecks Biodiversity Audit and how the SBP Project Fund is helping a new farmland bird survey.
March 2011 (1PDF 1.3 MB)
Purdis Heath and the Silver studded blue population, water fleas and the new Cladocera Interest Group, Suffolk stag beetle surveys contribute to scientific research, news from Dedham Vale and Stour Valley AONB Project, Access to Nature in Ipswich, Coastal flood events and potential habitat loss on the Suffolk coast, Youth work with Suffolk Wildlife Trust, Suffolk Community barn owl project and Acute Oak Decline has taken hold in Suffolk. Partnership news: Waveney Green Web makes good progress, launch of the Suffolk Environmental Education Network, Project Fund achievements for species and habitats.
November 2010 (PDF 2 MB)
Grey carpet project in the Brecks, Fen raft spiderlings released on Suffolk Broads, Broads Authority fen harvester creating wetland habitat, Suffolk community barn owl project, pollards in Dedham Vale, Natural England outreach work near Walberswick, white clawed crayfish 2nd ark site, Suffolk hedgerow survey, new population of dormice found in Millenium Wood, RSPB Minsmere Reserve wins EA's Pioneering Biodiversity award, Greenest County awards need you! Partnership news: launch of the Brecks Biodiversity Audit report, SBP meeting at Sizewell Power Station, Waveney Green Web project.
September 2010 (PDF 1.5 MB)
Waveney Bird Club's spotted flycatcher nest project, Suffolk Wildlife Trust's 9 new ponds at Grove Farm Nature Reserve, barn owl success in Dedham Vale & Stour Valley, Silver washed fritillary return to Suffolk, white clawed crayfish new 'ark' site, community initiative to restore saltmarsh in the Deben estuary, Aquarius paludum a new county skater record, Suffolk Naturalists' Society project funding, Sufolk Coastal's Greenprint Forum Wild Walk & Talk in the Suffolk Coast & Heaths AONB, Ipswich Borough Council's photography competition winner (peregrine on The Mill), fabulous new interative bat protocol for planners, Essex & Suffolk Water Branch Out Project and the Barberry carpet survey in St Edmundsbury. Partnership news: Suffolk & Norfolk planning & biodivesity seminar, working with communities and BAP review progress.
July 2010 (PDF 770 Kb)
Suffolk Wildife Trust's work with swifts, the Campaign for the Farmed Environment, free GIS viewers and tools, success with protecting the little tern colony at Kessingland, EA volunteers looking to help with conservation projects, Suffolk Coastal's Greenprint Forum, vegetation surveys and more with Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Project, update on Suffolk's BAP butterflies, butterfly success at Chilton Meadow, introducting Suffolk Coastal's new Community Environmental Action Advisor, SBP heathland group at work, SBP funding support.
May 2010 (PDF 910 Kb)
Eel populations in East Anglia, Black poplar DNA work, Lound Lakes breeding birds, south Sandlings Living Landscape project, Nowton Park update, Dingy Skipper hunt, new orchard at Hartismere School, Bures Mill fish and eel pass. Partnership news: heathland habitat working group, executive steering group, SBP at the Suffolk Show.
March 2010 (PDF 896 Kb)
Pillwort at Lound Lakes, Surveying for black poplars with Google Street View, Sutton Heath - a living landscape, Suffolk hedgerow survey, Publication of a new Flora of Suffolk, Sudbury Common Lands, Suffolk Wildlife Trust's WildLearning project, Take part in Suffolk's garden hedgehog survey. Partnership news: steering group at Nowton Park, Suffolk's Biodiversity Action Plan review progress and Planning group update.
January 2010 (PDF 464 Kb)
Suffolk tree sparrow project, climate change adaptation in Orfordness and Havergate Island, Broads Authority peat project, regional bat conference, Alde and Ore Futures, More bats find converted pillboxes, launch of SBP's NERC Act website and Suffolk Coastal's community projects webpage.
November 2009 (PDF 853 Kb)
Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Project update, Haverhill's new amphibian breeding ponds, 'Snakes, slow worms and orchards', pillwort, barn owls and more at Lound Lakes, dog awareness campagin for the Suffolk Coast and Heaths, Eye wildlife survey, butterfly monitoring in North Warren and Aldringham Walks Nature reserve and Dunwich Forest, Suffolk Biological Records Centre 'reaches a major milestone', barn owls in Ipswich, crayfish ark project, Suffolk and Norfolk's planning seminar and Brecks biodiversity audit.
August 2009 (PDF 555 Kb)
Suffolk Biological Records Centre update, Hedgerow survey, crayfish 'ark' project, Suffolk's soil savers, Martlesham's grass snakes live!, orchard survey update, wildlife and art: crystal glass sculpture Endangered.
June 2009 (PDF 891 Kb)
Holywells Park goes batty, East of England bird group, crayfish 'ark' project, encouraging news on the silver studded blue, Saving the sea swallow, NE's wetland BAP habitat inventories, horsing around in our AONB, notes from a private nature reserve, biodiversity in the Stour Valley, orchard survey update, Green Light Trust flash of good news, why be a member of SBP?
April 2009 (PDF 618 Kb)
Encouraging community biodiversity in Suffolk Coastal, Butterfly futures in Dunwich Forest, Suffolk community barn owl project linked to harvest mouse study, Suffolk hedgerow survey, stag beetle distribution, Flash of Good News from the Green Light Trust, Mid Suffolk District Council sign up as a Breathing Places community.
February 2009 (PDF 281 Kb)
Floating pennywort on the River Waveney, Suffolk County Council's roadside nature reserve cut and collect scheme, Landseer Park (Ipswich) update, A Living Landscape for Suffolk's dormice, Water Framework Directive consultation, butterfly survey, Suffolk crayfish 'ark' project, tree sparrows, RSPB reserve mammals, planning update, Focus on Local Authorities.
December 2008 (PDF 365 Kb)
Stag beetle dispersal, Otters & stillwater fisheries guidance, Heathland restoration at Tiger Hill LNR, Wet woodland in the Waveney valley, Beachwatch in Suffolk, From landfill to larks Ipswich Borough rangers, Is pillwort losing the fight at Lound?, Suffolk hedgerow survey, Planning update, focus on Habitat Working Groups.
September 2008 (PDF 356 Kb)
Bats at Ickworth Park, The Deer Initiative, Suffolk Traditional Orchard survey, Stag beetles, Lound Lakes reserve, Barnby Broad restoration.
July 2008 (PDF 165 Kb)
Silver-studded blue butterfly re-introduction at Blaxhall Common, News from Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley, Hunting for the Scarlet malachite beetle in Suffolk, Elveden Estate and Natural England partnership, Suffolk hedgerow survey, Underground electricity lines at Blythburgh marshes, Corton Woods project award, Ponds and great crested newts.
June 2008 (PDF 152 Kb)
Elveden Center Parcs and Biodiversity Benchmark Award, River Stour eel and fish pass, 2008 East Anglian marine mammal leaflet.
October 2011 (