Great Crested Newt

[MeDappaDonn]

i found one of these in my reception at the work the other day. we think it got through the letterbox which is at foot level. it didn't look very alert but i released it next to the pond where the letterbox was. the next day we found 2 in there! unfortunately they had both died :( any explanation why they would they would enter a property? i cant figure it out? any info would be great thanks. we don't want a repeat occurrence as i know they are a protected species

[MountainlionWales]

@MeDappaDonn oh dear! :( that's a bit bizarre... at this time of year they would be looking for somewhere to hibernate, so they are probably moving towards somewhere they can hide that won't freeze over winter, like in old log piles or down under leaves and roots in a woodland. Do you have woodland near or behind your work? Is the building fairly new and they are perhaps entering it by mistake? You could try blocking up wherever they are getting in, if possible, or moving the letter box?

[piccadillydave]

Cool. i'm looking to get a GCN licence. How long did it take to get yours? I'm also getting some voluntary work with bats and spent a month down in Exeter with a consultancy doing full time voluntary with them :)

[MountainlionWales]

@piccadillydave thanks :) and cool - ur doing all the right things! i did 2 yrs voluntary work and was named on about 5 different people's licenses. also did a couple of courses, one was NARRS where you are allowed a license to look for GCNs in your survey area only. i work in a consultancy now, am still getting exp to be able to do GCN surveying with pit fall traps. just keep getting all the exp u can rly :)

[piccadillydave]

@MountainlionWales hey just to let you know I've been getting a LOT of pitfall trap experience lol but now I need to get some experience with the other techniques! slooowly getting there :)

[MountainlionWales]

@piccadillydave awesome :) good luck with it all!

[classiclistener01]

@piccadillydave - It's illegal, internationally, to kill, injure or take a Great Crested newt; you can't even posses or control any live or dead specimen or anything derived from a GCN. You'd more than likely have to work for some government in order to "work with" these creatures - and, there is no such thing as a licence to own a GCN as there are "supposedly" little more than 300 known to exist - sorry.

[piccadillydave]

@classiclistener01 I know you can't own one.. I was talking about the licence for you to handle one. Most of what you said is true, but since last month I have been working with newts and reptiles and there are definitely more than 300 as we find about 20 on site each day! I am not allowed to touch GCN's yet, so I have to call someone over to collect it (for translocation). In order for me to handle one I need to be put on someone else's licence who thinks I am compitent OR if I want my own

[piccadillydave]

@classiclistener01 licence then I need to do all the different trapping techniques and get 2 people to sign to say I am compitent in handling them

[classiclistener01]

@piccadillydave I suppose you can do whatever you'd like, but just before writing my comment to you, I read that there's NO license to do ANYTHING with these creatures - unless you work for some kind of government facility that watches over protected animals. I just don't want to see someone like yourself, who seems competent and conscientious, get into trouble. There aren't enough "animal lovers" as it is, and I'd hate to hear of one (you) getting busted for being a good guy! :)

[classiclistener01]

@piccadillydave - Also, I read in a Massachusetts newspaper a few years ago about an artist who found bald eagle feathers on her property and used them to create a 3D painting. She actually WON - and then WON a trip to jail when officials from the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries showed up. They confiscated the painting and arrested her for having the feathers of a highly protected raptor in her possession. I'm not trying to scare you or be a jerk, but it can happen even if you mean well!

[piccadillydave]

@classiclistener01 I see. I live in the UK so maybe it's different

[classiclistener01]

@piccadillydave - What I read was, "illegal internationally," so check it out closely; or, get a job with a wildlife and/or ecological group.

[mopam7]

I love that little guy...he's quite beautiful! & i Love this music! :)

[MountainlionWales]

@mopam7 thanks :)

[monfitz]

Beautiful creature

[MountainlionWales]

@monfitz

:)

[gloriousrant]

err......is that not the female of the species?

[MountainlionWales]

@gloriousrant

nope - it was winter so he doesnt have a crest at this time, altho u can still see his hemipenal bulge at the base of the tail, and he still has a pretty white flash at the end of his tail.

[ImperiumBritannica]

Isn't it illegal to take Great Crested Newts out of their habitat? I'm pretty sure it is.

Lovely newt though mate.

[MountainlionWales]

@ImperiumBritannica

thanks - yes, it is very illegal - I'm an ecologist and this was brought to me as someone found it in the middle of the road at night - they didnt know what it was, or what to do with it, so they brought it to me. it was given a bit of food to keep it going, and released asap. you need a great crested newt license to handle these newts (i am covered).

[MountainlionWales]

@ImperiumBritannica

thanks - yes, it is very illegal - I'm an ecologist and this was brought to me as someone found it in the middle of the road at night - they didnt know what it was, or what to do with it, so they brought it to me. it was given a bit of food to keep it going, and released asap. you need a great crested newt license to handle these newts (i am covered)

[c00lsam123]

i have both braveheart and gladiator from this box set called epic legends XD

[MountainlionWales]

@c00lsam123

haha, coolie :)

[youscran]

the song is clearly from gladiator.

[MountainlionWales]

whoops!!! and it is :p

[c00lsam123]

@youscran you mean russel crowes movie?

[elitebionic]

totally random but i love the bg music.

what is it!?

[MountainlionWales]

hehe, it's from the movie Braveheart, called 'Once we were free' or something like that :)

[Sean0fenton]

I know its illeagal about disturbing great crested newts and stuff involing them needs to be licensed, but what if they are breeding in someones garden pond and the owner is unlicensed

[MountainlionWales]

yeah, there's all sorts of random stuff like that. if it's known about, legally the owner shouldn't do anything to the pond without getting advice from an ecologist and anything that they want doing like pond clearance should be done by sum1 with a license or at least guided by them - there was a story in the news a while ago when sum1's house flooded and they cudnt do anything to a ditch in their garden as GCNs had moved in!!! also, sumtimes ppl don't even know they have GCNs in their ponds!

[Sean0fenton]

well I just though I'd ask as a few yrs ago when I cleaned my pond out I got over 130common newts in my pond and I was wondering wot if they were GCN's

[MountainlionWales]

lol, wow, that's a lot of newts!! fair enough :)

[jakeh9t1]

i have found apsolutely loads of gc newts. i know that im not mistaken 4 sum other newt bcuz we only have 3 kinds in england if im correct, common(smooth)newt, gc newt, and at this moment cannot remember the name of the 3rd, but the gc newt luks far different from the other 2, i use 2 find atleast 20 a week. so either the number of gc newts thought 2 be out ther is rong or i know were these things are breeding like rabbits and/or could possibly be were they hybinate in huge numbers

[MountainlionWales]

cool. i dont think numbers are wrong, but they tend to be found in some areas more than others. if theres lots of big ponds around, they may be supporting a large breeding population of GCNs. to help make people aware of these numbers, u can submit ur data to a local Amphibian and Reptile Group (ARG) if u like, which will help to make more accurate records and help with GCN conservation.

p.s. the other is a palmate newt :)

[MountainlionWales]

That's good news for the GCNs. :) Yeah, they're so much easier to see when you use torches aren't they!

[pondguru]

There was supposedly a small GC newt population near me, although I had never seen one after years of poking about in ponds. A local shoot put in a large duck pond and after about 4-5 years it was massively populated with GC newts. On a night they can be seen with a powerful lamp underwater - dozens of them. Well managed shoots are essential for conservation in my view, I'd never seen a GC newt until the age of 23, and I'd looked in hundreds of ponds.

[sugarpop09]

a wana catch a great crested newt but a can neva find 1

[MountainlionWales]

i wouldn't if i was u... unless ur with a licensed person!! it is illegal to disturb them unless u have a license. ask around and see who is involved in newt stuff - they will be usually happy to show u, and probably glad of some extra help to clear ponds, etc. that way u can help the newts and get to see them :)

[eastyg]

theyre an endangered species. theres less than a thousand left in britain. catching them would not be wize

[snoopynol]

The guy who did this video states he does have a licence. I'm also a fully licensed ecologist, and a veterinary nurse, and people bring animals to me that they have found on the roadside, (and the occasional bat that has flown into the side of houses) etc. People shouldn't be put off helping if they find and sick or injured animal, there are plenty of people who can help.

[MountainlionWales]

true.

...p.s. just for the record... MountainlionWales is not a guy!! :p

[razblob]

u should have a license just to touch them

[MountainlionWales]

yeap, and also would need it if you had to disturb their habitat.

[merand0m3]

I read in a book that GCs were so badly endangered that if you could find a breeder and breed or maintain one in captiity it was ok. Is this true?

[MountainlionWales]

ahh, not sure about that one... how old was the book? it seems unlikely with current protection laws that this would be ok unless there was a very specific breeding prog in place with licenced people - mostly it's their habitat that needs helping to enable them to breed in the wild - even tho captivity might help that individual newt to keep more young alive, the rest of the newts would still be in trouble. Would need to release the young and make sure there was no bias of its genes anywhere.

[merand0m3]

It was a collins book about keeping exotic pets. It was published in 1998 so am I right in thinking that that was before recent protection laws? I was just curious as to because I liked the idea of keeping one as a pet well as knowing I would be helping maintain the species population.

[MountainlionWales]

ok... well, they have been protected under law since 1981, so the book should know that... did the statement have a reference after it, such as 'wildlife act of such a year?' To be honest I wouldn't trust that book - by the way are u in the UK? 'exotics' tends to suggest the newt they are talking about is not a UK native in that case(?) there are newts for sale in pet shops that are not UK natives. maybe u can contact english nature or somewhere similar and quote the book and see what they say.

[merand0m3]

Yh im in UK, Wales if that helps? Do u meen that u can perchase gc newts collected from other countries ? All the bok says is "Their numbers are declining in the UK due to habitat loss, so they are protected by law so they cannot be collected from the wild or have their habitats destroyed. They must only be purchased from captive-bred stocks and it is good to try to keep and support, or even breed, these native amphibians" I take it tht by calling them native they are in the uk?

[MountainlionWales]

ok i seem to be having problems posting 4 a while... maybe it will work this time...

[MountainlionWales]

yeah, same here, also in Wales! :)

well..sort of. pet shops don't sell GCNs but do sell species such as Italian crested newts, which our law doesn't cover. it's illegal to sell any kind of our native newts let alone GCN-they have full protection.

[MountainlionWales]

hmm it seems it didn't like me trying to put in a web address... try typing "essex wildlife trust amphibian law" into google and click on what hopefully should be the 1st link...

[merand0m3]

Yh it woz. I checked out out that site and GCs are under full protection. Dunno wot that book woz on about coz i can see those laws are in place for a reason. Thanx for ur help :)

[MountainlionWales]

cool :) glad it helped. and no worries! if u have time, maybe u should write to the publishers and tell them their mistake... or if u like u can give me the isbn number of that book, I'll try and track it down and see what I can do ;)

[merand0m3]

The ISBN is: 0-00-714258-7 if u want to c what u can do. I've E-mailed the publishers asking if they know about the laws protecting the newts and what had been done about it now so I'm waiting for a responce soon. Once again thanks and also i dont think i mentioned it before but the video is real kl! :)

[MountainlionWales]

awesome, thanx. i'll let u take it for now and see how it goes.. let me know how u get on with them replying! glad u like the vid :) also glad there r like minded ppl out there who value conservation!! :)

[MountainlionWales]

To be honest that's because I was a little dubious of the above claim to start with - without wanting to offend anyone by saying they are wrong, but not 100% sure myself because environmental laws keep being altered, so there may be some truth in there, I doubt there would be such an award because it may encourage people to go out searching for GCNs (hence disturbing) in order to try and claim an award.

[Nigelcf]

I had a wildlife pond built last year, and i think i have a GCN in my pond. I definitely have either palmate or smooth newts. They are wonderful creatures. Great video.

[davidgreenfc]

GCN are fully protected by the wildlife and Countryside act and the European Habitats Directive. It is illegal disturb them let alone take them from the wild and a Natural England Licence is required to handle one. The maximum penalty is a £5000 fine and/or 6 months in prison. I'm assuming you are aware of this and have the relevant authority. If not I suggest you replace the animal.

[MountainlionWales]

Thanks for your concern. I am a fully qualified ecologist carrying out GCN surveys under sufficient licencing. This one was brought to me while I was at home by someone who did not know what it was, let alone realise they were breaking the law. The animal was safely released back into the area where it was found, as stated at the end of the video.

[MountainlionWales]

I think we can overlook the fact that it was picked up by an innocent person from a road, who was just concerned that the animal's life was in danger - I think an accidental breach of the law in this case was better than leaving the GCN where it was to be flattened by the next passing vehicle! This video was made to help inform people about GCNs, even if it only helps them to recognise what one looks like if they are ever lucky enough to see one in the wild.

[outpostflags]

Thank you for making this excellent video

[MountainlionWales]

no worries! i enjoyed making it. thanks for the comment :)

[CrispyLambskin]

Interesting music choice :) Cool little fellas

[MountainlionWales]

yeah, i didn't really know what music suited a newt!! hehe. but it was a pretty awesome experience to see one feeding up close like that :)

[CrispyLambskin]

Im not sure about Wales but I think in England you can claim a small reward if you find a GC newt, as they are endangered. Again not sure about this but may be worth looking into :)

[MountainlionWales]

hmm, thanx 4 letting me know! i've never heard of that... i know sometimes u can get an environment award for groups/individuals that protect, improve or enhance GCN habitats... the Scottish Environment Protection Agency did something like that i think. as for here... i rly dont know, hehe!!

[rosmarinusofficialis]

You claim to be an ecologist. As such should you not be up-to-date with "environmental awards"?

[AskDrNewt]

I'm a doctor in newtology, and I have to say...you don't look much like a newt. lol thanks for the vid

[MountainlionWales]

Hehe, thanks. And no, I think Neo the iguana would get offended if you thought that she looked like a newt! :D