Print PageAs part of the England-based OPAL citizen science programme, the history and current ecology of two ex-colliery sites in Yorkshire was investigated to research the effects of different reclamation methods on biodiversity. The work took a multi-taxon approach and surveys were conducted to assess soil type and vegetation structure, and occurrence of bumblebees, butterflies, grasshoppers, mammals and plants. The sites have recently been designated as Country Parks and are important green spaces for the communities that surround them. Site history data was collected using participatory mapping methodologies with local residents to give an important background context for survey work. 34 volunteers were recruited through a variety of means to carry out surveys of plants, bumblebees and butterflies. The quality of data collected by volunteers was compared with that collected by the researchers.
Results/Conclusions
Volunteer data was found to be of good quality and highly valuable for increasing the physical and temporal extent of surveying that could be achieved. The research found that differences in the way the sites were reclaimed after the mines closed helped influence the biodiversity on the sites. The level of disturbance, underlying geology, material used as topsoil, and proximity to potential refugia were found to be key factors influencing the biodiversity of plants and invertebrates found on the sites. The research found significant differences in bumblebee community structure between the two sites and between areas of different reclamation methods. The specialised invertebrates found at these sites are likely to have taken refuge in the small areas of the sites that remained without landscaping work, allowing them to persist at the sites and recolonize after the reclamation had been completed. It has been recommended to the local council that the sites be managed in order to maintain early successional vegetation structure.
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