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Bracken use |
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Vanderklam
Senior Member Joined: 20 Apr 2008 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 54 |
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Posted: 06 Jun 2011 at 8:53pm |
Hi all,
I am currently in the process of writing an article regarding the use of bracken by adders as a basking medium, yet can't for the life of me recall any previous evidence of this among other published studies. Does anybody have any recollections of such a paper? Even if it concerns other species?
Happy Herping
Vanderklam
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Kevin Palmer
Lecturer in Animal Management/Course Manager |
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AGILIS
Senior Member Joined: 27 Feb 2007 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 1689 |
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Perhaps the adders name should be changed to the bracken snake as its coat denotes keith
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LOCAL ICYNICAL CELTIC ECO WARRIOR AND FAILED DRUID
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Paul Hudson
Senior Member Joined: 24 Sep 2004 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 98 |
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A local adder hibernacula that became devoid of bracken also lost its adders!
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Paul Hudson
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Robert V
Senior Member Joined: 06 Aug 2004 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 1264 |
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I don't think there can be many more uplifting sights than walking along a well trodden track in waist high bracken and seeing a plump female Adder curled up right in the middle of the path. Braken, much maligned and under rated. I've seen more slow worms in bracken than in any other surrounding.
R
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RobV
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Vanderklam
Senior Member Joined: 20 Apr 2008 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 54 |
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I know what you mean Rob, coming acrosss such a site is always aa welcoming one.
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Kevin Palmer
Lecturer in Animal Management/Course Manager |
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Suzy
Senior Member Joined: 06 Apr 2005 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 1447 |
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I think we've had a thread on this haven't we? I seem to remember I quoted Tony Phelps and I felt that their markings were so bracken-like it was no coincidence.
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Suz
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GemmaJF
Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Location: Essex Status: Offline Points: 4359 |
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One of the core issues to get across to land managers is the importance of bracken to reptiles though, so many seem entrenched with the idea that bracken is bad. When it has been there for many years and there are thick layers it is reptile heaven.
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Chris Monk
Senior Member Joined: 21 Apr 2004 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 282 |
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We seem to be getting that message about bracken across to the land managers of the new Eastern Moors Partnership that has taken over the moorland from the Peak Park, where it is an important for hibernation sites and also gives the adders good cover during the summer.
At the public meetings last year about the proposals for management from the new Partnership there was a lot of antagonism from members of the public towards bracken, demanding that measures be taken to eradicate it. We did have support from the RSPB (lead partners in the partnership) who want it kept for the stonechats and other birds, from the previous site staff who said it hadn't increased in extent on the main moorland areas in the last 30 years and from the archaeologists who said pollen samples from prehistoric to early medieval sites on the moors had bracken spores present showing that it was an important component of the landscape centuries ago. Unfortunately Kevin I don't know of any scientific papers that you could use/quote, although I expect there must be something out there. |
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Derbyshire Amphibian & Reptile Group www.derbyshirearg.co.uk |
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Vanderklam
Senior Member Joined: 20 Apr 2008 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 54 |
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Hi Chris,
It appears to be one of these concepts that are becoming more widely acknowledged, but with little published scientific evidence to support it. I suspect this will be a job for one of my dissertation students this coming year!!!
Best
K
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Kevin Palmer
Lecturer in Animal Management/Course Manager |
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