A POPULAR bird watching nature reserve in Upton Warren will being undergoing a £100,000 restoration project, starting later in November.
The Christopher Cadbury Wetland Reserve will undergo restoration works to boost habitats and support wildlife, starting on November 27.
The work has been made possible by Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme, which has provided £115,456 for the project.
The site, managed by Worcestershire Wildlife Trust, consists of freshwater and saltwater pools that already attract diverse birdlife to the area.
The freshwater pools, known as The Moors, offer a series of islands that provide an important refuge for birds throughout winter and nesting space in the summer.
In this programme of works, these islands will be reinforced and strengthened against erosion by using specialist posting and laying additional soil and gravel.
Further to these island improvements, open water habitat will also be created by removing some reed and bulrush around the water’s edge.
On The Flashes, the saltwater section of the reserve, areas will be dredged where silt has accumulated over time.
Deepening these channels will boost feeding areas for wading birds like avocets. The silt dredged will be used to build up existing islands, as well as creating a new island next to the mainland.
This will increase nesting space for species such as little ringed plover.
Eleanor Reast, the reserves officer who manages Upton Warren Wetland Reserve, said “These works will help to support a range of bird species from the common mallard to rarer birds like lapwing and curlew.
“As well as wildlife benefitting immediately, these works will also provide habitat for many years to come. For example, by dredging deeper feeding channels for the birds, the habitat will be more resilient to our changing climate.
“We’re very lucky to have an amazing group of volunteers at Upton Warren who undertake all sorts of management tasks.
“Thanks to Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme, this work will reduce the amount of maintenance they need to undertake on the islands.
“This is not only great for the volunteers, who can improve habitats elsewhere on the site, but also means that there is less interference to wildlife in the long-term.”
The restoration works will take about a month to complete, finishing just before Christmas.
