From Preservation to Conservation;

the restoration of sand drift dynamics in

Wales.

Sam Bosanquet, Julie Creer, Mike Howe,

Emmer Litt, John Ratcliffe, Ceri Seaton & Karen

Wilkinson

Wales and its coastline

Wales! Hard & Soft coast

= Saltmarsh

= Sand dune

= Soft cliff

= Vegetated sea cliff

Influence of climate change on

sand dune development

• Climatic conditions influence the morphology and

dynamics of dune systems. This is illustrated by

observations of past climate changes and dune

development trends.

• A changing climate influences parameters such as:

rainfall; wind speeds; storminess / wave action;

temperature / evaporation rates.

• A balance of these variables have influenced dune

stability / mobility.

Dune mobility and stability drivers

The principal mobility and stability drivers in coastal dune systems (Pye & Blott, 2012).

Welsh sand dunes,

what’s the problem?

What have we lost in Wales?

Whiteford Burrows

bare sand losses

Newborough Warren

bare sand losses

Loss of bare sand from 1940’s to

2013

Dune system Blown sand (ha)

in 1940s-50s

Bare sand (ha)

in 1940s-50s

Blown sand

(ha) in 2009

Bare sand

(ha) in 2009

Overall

loss (ha)

Gronant Dunes & Talacre Warren 240 26 (11%) 265 15 (6%) 11 (42%)

Tywyn Aberffraw 340 87 (26%) 344 13 (4%) 74 (85%)

Newborough Warren 1364 691 (51%) 1409 40 (3%) 651 (94%)

Morfa Harlech 986 82 (8%) 1066 23 (2%) 59 (72%)

Morfa Dyffryn 692 165 (24%) 696 62 (9%) 103 (62%)

Broomhill & Kilpaison Burrows 336 27 (8%) 336 4 (2%) 23 (85%)

Brownslade & Linney Burrows 332 91 (27%) 332 6 (2%) 85 (93%)

Laugharne & Pendine Burrows 629 108 (17%) 724 15 (2%) 93 (86%)

Pembrey Burrows 1677 86 (5%) 1871 34 (2%) 52 (60%)

Whiteford Burrows 148 77 (52%) 164 16 (14%) 61 (79%)

Llangennith Burrows 190 60 (32%) 186 9 (5%) 51 (85%)

Crymlyn Burrows 268 13 (5%) 323 2 (0.6%) 11 (85%)

Baglan Burrows 518 66 (13%) 574 11 (2%) 55 (84%)

Kenfig Burrows 878 154 (18%) 874 4 (0.5%) 150 (97%)

Merthyr Mawr Warren 559 218 (39%) 581 20 (3%) 198 (91%)

TOTAL 9157 1951 (21%) 9745 274 (3%) 1677 (86%)

Directional trend

Observation of a directional trend towards stabilisation…

Images of Kenfig sand dune system, south Wales

1941 1962 1982 1999 2006

Image source: KPAL 2014 and Pye & Blott, (2012)

Meesia uliginosa

Bryum calophyllum

No bare sand. So what?

Liparis loeselii

Biodiversity losses

• Bryophytes

• Bryum calophyllum – now extinct

• Catoscopium nigritum – now extinct

• Meesia uliginosa – now extinct

• Fen orchid Liparis loeselii (S1903)

• Since the late 1980s, the species has been lost from three

(Pendine Burrows, Crymlyn Burrows and Baglan Burrows)

out of 5 Welsh sand dune systems on which it occurred.

• Invertebrates

• Broscus cephalotes – once widespread across dunes is

now restricted to the narrow strandline.

Key research conclusions

Radical action is needed! Grazing,

mowing, scrub clearance and shallow

scrapes have failed to halt the decline

of key dune and dune slack species

(Rhind & Jones, 2009).

‘Coverage of 30-40% pioneer dune and

dune slack habitats, including 10-15% bare

sand, can be regarded as the minimum

required in a dynamic dune system capable

of supporting a wide range of species and

habitats’ (Pye & Blott, 2012).

Climate change is unlikely to reverse dune

stabilisation (Houston & Dargie, 2010)

Areas of rejuvenation at

Newborough Warren & Forest

Newborough Bare sand

created (ha)

Phase 1

Winter 2012-2013 3.96

Phase 2

Winter 2013-2014

Zone 1 West

Zone 1 East

3.85

3.54

Phase 3

Winter 2014-2015 6.63

Total 14.44

Pre-works 40 ha (3% of site) = Bare sand

Post-works 54 ha (4% of site) = Bare sand

Phase 2

Phase 1

Phase 3

Areas of rejuvenation at Kenfig

Site

Bare sand created (ha)

July

2012

May

2013

March

2014

March

2015

Phase 1 2.97 2.97 2.69 2.42

Phase 2 n/a 4.52 4.20 5.32

Phase 3 n/a n/a n/a 2.46

Total 2.97 7.49 6.88 10.20

Pre-works 4 ha (0.5% of site) = Bare sand

Post-works 14 ha (1.5% of site) = Bare sand

Phase 2

Phase 1

Phase 3

Dune slack scrapes

Does it work?

Invertebrate records

Newborough Warren

• In 2013,

• 7 / 16 pioneer dune beetle species

colonising newly created damp

exposed sand.

• In 2015

• 9 / 16 pioneer dune beetle species

colonising bare sand in rejuvenation

areas.

• Several of these species had been scarce

or apparently absent from the site prior to

the rejuvenation work.

• Principal Component Analysis has

grouped the fauna of the excavated slacks

on Newborough Warren close to the

natural pioneer slacks found on Morfa

Dyffryn

Kenfig Burrows

• In 2014,

• Pitfall trapping by Natural Resources

Wales in an excavation on Kenfig

Burrows recorded Bembidion

pallidipennis in large numbers (over

600 specimens), having been last

recorded on this system in 1992.

• Three other slack specialists (Bledius

fergussoni, Dyschirius politus and

Tachytrechus insignis) were also found.

• The Vernal Bee Colletes cunicularius has

also been able to colonise excavations,

nesting in sand banks at Kenfig Burrows

Does it work?

Fen orchid (Liparis loeselii)

2007 – 241 plants on Kenfig Burrows

DUNE SLACK SCRAPING

2014 - 44 plants on Kenfig Burrows

2015 - 412 plants on Kenfig Burrows (10,000

plants in 1970s and early ‘80s)

2017 – 1016 plants in turf-stripped slack

Options for the future

Do nothing! Be bold!

Future plans for Wales

Sands of LIFE LIFE17 NAT/UK/000023

• Restoration benefitting

• 1465 ha of H2130*

• 12 ha of H2120

• 37 ha of H2170 & H2190 (specifically

for P. ralfsii, R. rupestris and L. loeselii)

• 10 frontal dune notches

• 12 ha of re-profiled dunes

• 23 ha of H2130* mowed

• 12 ha of dune slacks scraped &

created

• 44 ha native scrub removed

• 681 ha of duneland cleared of IAS

• 7 ha of conifers removed

• 14ha dunes cleared of conifer stumps

• Appropriate and sustainable grazing

on 1185 ha of dunes

• Rabbit populations supplemented at

3 sites

• Existing rabbit populations managed

at 7 sites

• Unexploded ordnance cleared from

28 ha of dunes

• Monitor outcomes & promote best

practice on other sites

• Raised public understanding of the

dynamic nature of dunes and the

value of sand dune habitats and

species

• We are still waiting to hear if we have

the funding!!!!!

Conclusions

• Stabilisation has reduced the intrinsic geomorphological interest of the

sites and poses a threat to the nature conservation interests.

• The trials currently underway are intended to determine the feasibility of

restoring a greater degree of sand mobility

• It will only be possible to determine the degree of success through

monitoring over a five to ten year period

• The trials offer great opportunities for new research into the interactions

between physical, chemical and ecological processes.

• Next steps…….. Sands of LIFE (LIFE17 NAT/UK/000023)

Thank you (Diolch yn fawr!)