# Dont great crested newts have to be looked after?



## Harbinger (Dec 20, 2008)

Theres a pond near a local wildlife trust run hill which had a hell of a lot of great crested newts in all the time. Hadnt been there in a couple of years, had a look recently and its bone dry with shrubs growing where the pond used to be.
Arent they supposed to not let it get that bad?


----------



## Matt Harris (Aug 21, 2007)

There's no law that says their habitat has to be maintained, but any activity which might have caused the pond to dry out, such as digging affecting the drainage or water table, or blocking the flow of water to the pond) would in theory need a licence.

I know of quite a few crestie ponds that dry out from time to time, but it's not the end of the world as the adults live on land to come back and breed in the future. In fact, drying out every now and then (i.e. once every 10 years on average), is good for cresties as it knocks back any fish that may have colonised the pond, as well as aquatic predators such as dragonfly and great diving beetle larvae.

However, if the pond is still empty after all this rain, and/or it dries out every year, then it might need some management (under licence) to clear out silt etc which may have built up.


----------



## henry415 (Apr 1, 2012)

Matt Harris said:


> There's no law that says their habitat has to be maintained, but any activity which might have caused the pond to dry out, such as digging affecting the drainage or water table, or blocking the flow of water to the pond) would in theory need a licence.
> 
> I know of quite a few crestie ponds that dry out from time to time, but it's not the end of the world as the adults live on land to come back and breed in the future. In fact, drying out every now and then (i.e. once every 10 years on average), is good for cresties as it knocks back any fish that may have colonised the pond, as well as aquatic predators such as dragonfly and great diving beetle larvae.
> 
> However, if the pond is still empty after all this rain, and/or it dries out every year, then it might need some management (under licence) to clear out silt etc which may have built up.



I can see you know your stuff Matt, i was going to reply in exactly the same words!: victory:


----------

