Lack of ponds threatening newt in Scotland

Laura Topp writes: The great-crested newt is struggling to survive in Scotland as a result of a diminishing number of farm ponds.

According to Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), many ponds have been superseded by taps and other modern means as a source of water for wildlife, which has meant that there are fewer places for the species to breed.

As such, the organisation has called on individuals to build a pond in their garden in a bid to help boost the survival rates of the black and orange creature, the Scotsman reports.

SNH species management adviser, John McKinnell, urged people to also get involved in community projects to help protect the newt.

He told the newspaper: "They are threatened across Europe due to loss of habitat. A major thing is breeding sites. They breed in ponds rather than streams or lochs.

"They like farm ponds, but agricultural practices have changed over the last century and now there are not the same number of ponds as there used to be. People can help to a certain extent by building ponds in their gardens. The new ponds have got to be close enough to the places where newts live for them to commute."

The great-crested newt is the largest species of newt in Britain and is also known as the wary newt thanks to the lumps which grow on its skin.

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