'I have never seen the pond so low in 17 years'
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- James Herd, director of reserves management at Surrey Wildlife Trust, says the pond at Pond Farm on Wisley Common is at its lowest level in his 17-year tenure at the trust
- Meteorologists at Wisley have not recorded any rainfall for more than 50 days as the UK experiences its fifth heatwave of the year
- Plants and trees near the drying pond are shedding leaves in an autumn-like self-protective move, with Herd describing the signs as visible 'struggle'
- Herd argues the data shows the UK is getting more weather extremes and that this summer is 'not a one-off', calling for preparation for long dry spells
- Surrey Wildlife Trust is in ongoing positive conversations with Natural England about a licence to release beavers, hunted to local extinction about 400 years ago, to help rewet lowland heathland
- Lowland heathland at Pond Farm is a rare habitat on acidic, nutrient-poor soils where holding more water — potentially via beavers — is the goal
Why it matters: The 50-day rainless stretch at Wisley is a concrete marker of how the UK's fifth heatwave is straining even rare protected habitats like lowland heathland, with plants shedding leaves in self-protection. SWT's ongoing beaver-licence talks with Natural England signal conservationists are pivoting toward rewilding as drought-adaptation, reversing a 400-year local extinction.
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