Our ability to understand better the natural habitat of the reedbed has led to one of the best stories in nature conservation, the re-emergence of reedbed all over this country. I can remember the time when to see wintering Bitterns you had to travel to NW England. Now they are in a reed bed not 6 miles from the centre of London.
The Softrack, a new-state-of-the-art cutting machine, is helping the RSPB to give wildlife a home in Blackloftands, the largest tidal reed bed in England.
The light and agile vehicle that is able to cut reed quickly and efficiently and can easily access the wettest areas at the heart of the reedbed. This means the RSPB is able manage the site more effectively, by creating open areas across the reedbed that benefit a huge range of wildlife including rare bitterns, bearded tits and water voles.
Pete Short, Humber Reserves Manager, says: “In the past we used a tractor with hay mower to cut the reed but the weight of the vehicle meant that it sank in the wetter parts of the reserve. This meant we had to resort to using a heavy-duty strimmer called a brush cutter, which was hard physical work and pretty miserable as we used to get…
View original post 135 more words
Pete's Favourite Things 