Ardeer Quarry LNR Public Consultation

[iain]

The eastern half of Ardeer Quarry will be declared a Local Nature Reserve (LNR) in the near future. As part of the development of the Ardeer Quarry LNR management plan, Stevenston Environmental Group is holding a public consultation on the proposals for the reserve.

Details of the proposals and the group’s email address can be found at:
http://www.geocities.com/stevenstonenvi ... erpage.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
(Please persevere with the site – for some reason the page sometimes need refreshing a couple of times before it eventually loads.)

Physical work cutting back scrub, felling trees, etc. will probably start at the end of winter. With all the red tape involved in creating a new wetland, I’m guessing that work won’t begin on this until at least the end of next summer.

Iain

[bobbydarg]

At last a worthwhile project. wish you all the best.

[little plum]

Hi Iain,
Like B.DARG I wish your group all the best, I am quite familiar with the work Gavin McInnes initiated in Ardeer and I think he desevres public recognition. i.e. the ponds at Auchenharvie golf course, the quarry, Stevenston burn etc.
I noticed on your link it did,nt mention the population of Roe Deer that has thrived in the present environment at the quarry, I hope your group will take this in to consideration, as they are a major topic of conversation and interest for us locals.
p.s. I admire your drive and motivation to want to improve the local environs, we would all like to see this but very few pick up the reigns

[John Donnelly]

LP, hi,

I didn't know there was a group of roe-deer at the quarry. I'm over there often when I'm home. My brother lives in the Mount Pleasant and I always go over the Rec for a walk. Where did they come from? Were they seeded or did they arrive of their own accord.

I think this is terrific for the town.

JD.

[little plum]

Hi JD,
My B.I.L stays at Highfield Dr and sees the Roe deer at the bottom of his garden on a regular basis. I have no idea of the population as it could be the same group out grazing. As far as I know there has'nt been a study of the area. Without a knowledge of their behaviour patterns any encounter is by chance. Last year when my son was walking the dog they encountered a doe with fawn,( if you look at the map of the area,it was near Gavin's pond) the doe ran off, and my dog pounced on the very young fawn. My son managed to remove the dog without any visable damage, my only concern was the scent left, and if the doe would accept the fawn back. As for how they got there, my assumption would be migration from other overpopulated areas, or the fact that parts of Eglington park is now being developed,( occasionally you will find one thats been killed on the Kilwinning by pass,) and the sand extraction at far end of Ardeer displacing the resident group. To the south of the the map where they are proposing to develope a wetland, is another area where sighting are quite frequent.
LP.

[John Donnelly]

Hi, LP,

I'm amazed. I never knew there were deer anywhere near the ThreeTowns. I've never seen one there.

They seem to be thriving, which is great, but I suppose some busybody will find that they are causing a nuisance or overgrazing or something, and have them culled.

My God !! Why am I so pessimistic, - and it Christmas and all.

JD.

[iain]

Thanks for the positive responses.

Little plum, you’ve hit on one of our main concerns. The deer are without a doubt the most captivating creatures at the site. The effects of losing some of the land that the deer use for lying up and feeding can hopefully be mitigated by some of our other plans:

1) Thinning the trees and planting shrubs in the Woodhead Plantation should provide better feeding (lusher grass grown on the sunnier woodland floor and a good supply of shrub leaves) and cover for the deer at this part of the site (dense shrub patches).

2) Leaving strips of the neighbouring amenity grassland to grow wild should again provide extra feeding.

3) The new ‘woodland clearing’ should support grazing deer a bit better than the woodland that would otherwise mature at that part of the site.

4) The regenerated scrubby heathland along the B752 embankment will hopefully provide better feeding than the dense, semi-mature woodland that’s there currently.

5) Converting the amenity grassland by Gavin’s Wee Pond into a marshland should again provide better feeding and cover for deer (in other areas of Stevenston – Ardeer Fen and Ashgrove Loch – the deer seem to have a thing for grazing damp marsh vegetation).

I’m not sure whether a new wetland would simply displace the site’s deer to other parts of the reserve or whether the population would decrease slightly in numbers. Whatever the case, we hope that the new habitats created through our other projects will compensate (hopefully more than compensate) for the loss of current habitat to wetland creation.

Regarding the origins of the deer, Roe Deer have been experiencing a steady increase in numbers nationally for decades (owing to continuing reforestation) and they started to flood into the area 5-9 years ago. Nowadays, there are few if any places in the countryside around Stevenston where you don’t get Roe Deer.

Iain

[little plum]

Iain,
A contributing factor in the increase of roe deer, in my opinion, was the restrictions on the ownership of firearms. You might remember "Hungerford and Dunblane" the government introduced tighter controls on the licencing and storage of firearms and ammunition ,and where the owners were discharging their weapons. I remember it well as I was scrutinised by the local constabulary at that time . As Hughie mentioned about his B.I.L. with the deer, it was'nt unusual for this to happen , we did'nt have deep freezers , and the Venison would be shared around the family or neighbours .
I hope when you start your project it is done with a sympathetic understanding of the the local environment and it is phazed in to allow the established residents time to acclimitise.
I strongly support man's involvement in nature, unlike others, if we look at the Grouse moors where they burn the old heather to encourage new growth to feed the chicks and the hatcheries on our rivers to maintain stocking levels of migratery fish, if it was'nt for these committed organisation's we would be in a state of no return.

[morag]

Honestly I think 'man' should butt out...nature seems quite capable of maintaining the balance but we can't seem to do that I realise there's a make it right mode but it seems sometimes we just make a bigger mess:roll:

[little plum]

I agree up to a point Morag, mankind has made an a--e of the planet. But I respect all the organisations around the world doing their wee bit to conserve nature, and hopefully they will reverse the dwindling numbers.

[little plum]

Looking to the North of the site, note the overnight frost on the grass verge

More central, if you look closely you will see Mallard Ducks using the ditch.

And looking South towards the railway line.

J.D. This area is your best chance of seeing Roe Deer, it's a natural environment for them.

[gerv]

With ref. to the roe deer I can remember seeing quite a few of them when I worked in the Blasting dept. in Ardeer Factory in the late 70,s / early 80's in the area known as the Misk

Gerv