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New report shows UK nature bearing brunt of chaotic climate

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The Wildlife Trusts warn: Government is shockingly underprepared

Today, The Wildlife Trusts publish their new assessment of the effects of climate change on nature across the UK. The report, Resilient Nature, shows how much-loved species and habitats are faring across The Wildlife Trusts’ 2,600 nature reserves in response to the changing climate and extreme weather over the past year. 

Whilst summer’s headlines were dominated by heatwaves and drought, the report reveals that over the past 12 months it has been extreme changes in weather patterns that have been the most damaging overall, with the natural world bearing much of the brunt.  

Key findings include: 

  • Drought and heat extremes have caused important wildlife habitats, such as peat bogs and heathlands, to dry out on Wildlife Trust nature reserves. Low water levels in ponds, streams and rivers have also affected swifts, dragonflies and amphibians.
  • High wildfire risk has imperilled precious landscapes, including Upton Heath in Dorset where nature reserve staff were devastated to find charred birds’ nests among the fire debris in April.
  • Unpredictable weather has led to disruptive storm events, with natural habitats unable to absorb sudden, vast amounts of rainfall. When two months’ worth of rain fell in just a few days, multiple Wildlife Trust nature reserves were flooded. 
Nene Wetlands flood

Matt Jackson, Conservation Director at Wildlife Trust BCN, says: 

“Climate change is one of the biggest challenges we now face managing wildlife sites in Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. The rate at which the climate is changing is getting faster. It is taking up more resources, more money, more staff time and we are having to find new ways to protect special places.

"One of the major challenges is that, although we know how our climate is likely to change, the weather patterns that result are much less predictable. We will probably see wetter winters, so we’re adapting the management of the rides in many of our woodlands to prevent them waterlogging and pushing visitors off paths into fragile habitats. We’re also looking to see how we can capture winter water in key areas to prevent drying out in the subsequent hotter summers.

"With initiatives like our Banking on Butterflies project we’re investigating how manipulating micro-climates, by creating slopes that heat up differently in the sun, can provide a wider range of habitat for species that are sensitive to temperature changes.

"We also need to accept that the populations and communities of species that make up our nature reserves are shifting. We can adapt to reduce disrupting ecosystems, but we need to recognise that change is inevitable. We are working with partners to identify key corridors through our countryside to enable mobile species to adapt."

The latest UK State of Climate report(2) made clear that this weather chaos – with more frequent record temperatures, drought, fire and flooding – is now the norm. The Wildlife Trusts are hard at work safeguarding the natural world from the worst of climate extremes. Examples include: 

  • Hertfordshire & Middlesex Wildlife Trust have worked to reduce the risk of the River Lea flooding, helping to protect local communities as well as supporting wading birds, juvenile fish, dragonflies and damselflies.
  • Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s extensive restoration of peatbogs at Drumburgh Moss is slowing and storing water, capturing carbon and supporting wildlife such as white-faced darters, a rare dragonfly which has declined due to loss of peatbog habitat.
  • Thanks to Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, 90 hectares of restored floodplain at Manor House Farm is increasing local community resilience to sea level rise whilst providing habitat for overwintering waders and migratory wildfowl. 

​Kathryn Brown OBE, director of climate change and evidence at The Wildlife Trusts, says: “Our new report reveals that climate change is accelerating at a frightening pace, with worrying impacts on wildlife and nature reserves – as well as on human health and our future resilience as an economy. Yet while Wildlife Trust staff and volunteers across the UK race to adapt the way that we care for our land, Government action to address climate change is fast falling behind.  

“The events in southern Europe – where wildfires and floods have imperilled both people and wildlife – should sound the alarm loudly: we are shockingly underprepared for such extremes here in the UK. The UK Government must rapidly undertake a major overhaul of adaptation policy, with increased funding and coordination, in order to tackle this accelerating threat head on.” 

Read the Resilient Nature Report

Editor's notes

  1. View the Resilient Nature report
  2. The latest UK State of Climate report made clear that weather chaos – with more frequent record temperatures, drought, fire and flooding – is now the norm: State of the UK Climate - Met Office 

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