Braunton Countryside CentreAndy Byfield from Plant Life explains how the Dynamic Dunescapes Project is restoring rare species and habitats on the Braunton Burrows
Join us at the Braunton Countryside Centre to hear the conservation case for how the Dynamic Dunescapes Project’s drastic restoration efforts will restore lost dune habitat and conserve vulnerable flora and wildlife on these world-famous sand dunes.
The Braunton Burrows sand dunes have been identified as one of Europe’s most ‘at risk’ ecosystem types. Air pollution and increased nitrogen levels in the sand are believed to be fuelling scrub development, which smothers delicate and endangered plants. Scrub clearance work on the Burrows takes place every year at this time of year, when wildlife is less active, to avoid disturbing nesting birds and other wildlife.
Scrub removal may appear to be quite a sever process, but it is an essential part of the dune restoration process in the Burrows ecosystem. The latest works, which are supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, are being carried out by Dynamic Dunescapes in partnership with Christie Estates.
Contractors are removing large expanses of scrub, which consists primarily of brambles, privet, and hawthorn, but also includes willow, birch, and alder trees. The environment may appear barren throughout the winter months, but by Spring, an abundance of flora, including rare flowers like the Water Germander, Bog Pimpernel, and numerous varieties of orchids, as well as creatures like the rare Sand Lizard, will be able to thrive from this work.
This talk is intended to educate and inform the general public about the management of the beautiful burrows, as well as to address any questions or concerns you may have about this area.
This event will be a hybrid event so you can either join us in person or from the comfort of your own home on Zoom.
Please follow the link to purchase your tickets for a donation.
About the speaker:
Andy Byfield is a botanist, environmentalist, and gardener from South Devon. He has had a lifetime love of plants and is one of the co-founders of Plantlife, a wild plant conservation charity. During a ten-year tenure working for Fauna and Flora International in Turkey, he was instrumental in establishing village-based production of artificially propagated wild flower bulbs in the Taurus Mountains, as well as spearheading the creation of the Important Plant Areas of Turkey inventory, the first of its kind anywhere on the planet. As a result of his extensive travels across Anatolia, over 30 new species have been added to Turkey’s flora. He currently works as a consultant for Plantlife’s conservation programme, as well as writing, and tour leading.