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structures to preserve Mosses’ peat bogs.
Programmes officer at Northumberland National Park, Abi Mansley, said: “In the 1990s plywood dams were installed at Lampert Mosses to prevent the peat bogs from fragmenting and losing their peat.
“Now, over 20 years later, the original dams are delaminating and need to be replaced to safeguard this important habitat. We’re creating around 100 mini dams to prevent further fragmentation and to slow the water flow reaching the Tyne and Irthing rivers.
“The presence of the cloud-living spider at Lampert Mosses has made the preservation of the peat bogs even more important. With population numbers of cloud-living spiders in rapid decline due to habitat loss, the North of England is now home to a globally important population.”
Volunteer coordinator from Tyne Rivers Trust, Simone Price, said: “Reinforcing the existing dams in the ditches at Lampert Mosses benefits the Tyne as well as the spider.
“The dams reduce peak flows and improve water quality by decreasing the the Lampert amount of sediment reaching the river, which in turn benefits invertebrates and several species of fish.”
Marjorie Davy, lead adviser from Natural England, Northumbria, said: “This is a remarkable collection of peat bogs, which is partly a product of the remote setting and also the very high rainfall that characterises this part of the country.
“It is also a very challenging place to work and so we are really pleased with the huge efforts put in by Northumberland National Park and their partners to help protect this sensitive habitat that is home to some rare invertebrates, including cloud-living spiders.”