Celtic Rewilding, [1] formally known as Celtic Reptile & Amphibian, [2] is a conservation company, established in 2020, by Harvey Tweats and Tom Whitehurst, with the initial aim of reintroducing extinct reptiles and amphibians back to rewilding projects within the UK. However, the company's scope has since broadened to all lost species of the UK and northern Europe. [3] It is based in Leek, Staffordshire. [4] [5]
The company was conceptualised after founder Harvey Tweats visited the River Otter beaver trial, where Eurasian Beavers were reintroduced, creating habitats that would have supported extinct amphibian species, as they are ecosystem engineers. However, the beaver was hunted to extinction in the 16th century, [6] leading amphibian species to also slip into extirpation, only for beavers to be released hundreds of years later, after the extinction of many amphibian species. This means the only way these species could return is through direct reintroduction. Tweats was also inspired by reintroduction expert Derek Gow. [7] Later, Tom Whitehurst joined, handling the technical and accounting aspects of Celtic Reptile & Amphibian (now Celtic Rewilding). [5]
In 2020, a site was developed to help upscale the breeding effort with financial help from a range of environmentalists, including Ben Goldsmith and Sir Charles Burrell. The breeding facility is the largest of its type, dedicated only to European species in an open-air environment. Eventually it will house more reptiles than Chester Zoo. [8] [9]
Thus far, success has been achieved with the moor frog, as it has been successfully bred in captivity by the company, sparking talk of reintroduction, [10] [11] as it was likely extirpated by deforestation (in western Europe and the UK) and large-scale wetland drainage specifically in the Fens. [12] [13]
In response to worries about the potential transfer of diseases (like chytrid which causes chytridiomycosis) from captive animals to the wild, a biosecurity protocol was enacted. It included ecologically certified newt fences, sanitising stations and foot-dips. All breeding stock is tested with PCR testing. [14]
Celtic Rewilding undertake research with many partners. This is focussed on feasibility of species reintroduction and examining evidence for species native status. [15]
Currently, 5 species of herptile are classed as extirpated in the UK, and suitable for reintroduction;
The organisation is pursuing the re-establishment of the European pond turtle, as a flagship species reintroduction in the face of climate change and the growing popularity of rewilding. Surviving until the Neolithic, this chelonian qualifies as a native British species as evidenced by fossils and sedaDNA analysis, however, it most likely went extinct due to a combination of climatic deterioration, habitat destruction and hunting. [24] [25] With a warming climate, the reintroduction would serve as a case-study example of the growing popularity of assisted colonisation as a way of mitigating the effects of climate change on wildlife populations. By moving a species with its climate envelope, biodiversity loss can be mitigated. This is not the first example of a reintroduction where a species, nor even a chelonian, has been re-established in an area last inhabited in prehistoric times: the Bolson tortoise has been reintroduced to its Pleistocene range in the south-east USA where it was extirpated for 13,000 years. [26]
The first step in the reintroduction of the European pond turtle, is the creation of a large (3.5 ha), naturalistic enclosure similar to the reintroduction of the Bolson tortoise to the USA, as this helps to 'heft' females to a nesting location, building site fidelity. European pond turtles are very faithful to nesting locations. [26] [27] [28] Celtic Rewilding have worked with the University of Cambridge to develop a project feasibility study for the restoration of this species. They propose a trial release into a fenced area to investigate the impact (positive or negative) on native species and the incubation success of the turtle, somewhere in the East Anglian Broads, Brecks or Fens. There, it is climatically suitable and close to East Wretham, where the turtle fossils were discovered in 1836 and subsequently described by Alfred Newton. [29] [30] The enclosure will have several water bodies to allow the turtles' impact to be monitored and to investigate how successfully they can breed in the UK. A feasibility study has shown that the turtles could have the following positive impacts:
So far, Celtic Rewilding have initiated a crowdfunding campaign and have imported 60, genetically appropriate turtles from Bavaria. They have garnered support from Professor William J. Sutherland and TV presenter Nigel Marven. [29] [27] [31] Also, the construction of quarantine and holding facilities has commenced. [27] The project will run for 5 years. The organisation has the largest captive group of the species. [32]
The company also helps to advise estates, NGOs and farmers on how they can rewild their landholdings. They define rewilding as “the large scale restoration of ecosystems through the provision of protecting land from human uses, and re-introducing lost natural processes with the ultimate aim of letting nature take care of itself. This may include, but not limited to, the reintroduction of extinct species”. [33]
Celtic Rewilding have been instrumental to the reintroduction of beavers to Staffordshire and Lincolnshire. [34] In Lincolnshire, they have partnered with renown giftware firm, Wrendale Designs. [35]
Tweats has stated that the company has an advisory acreage of 12,000.[ citation needed ]
Species reintroduction is the deliberate release of a species into the wild, from captivity or other areas where the organism is capable of survival. The goal of species reintroduction is to establish a healthy, genetically diverse, self-sustaining population to an area where it has been extirpated, or to augment an existing population. Species that may be eligible for reintroduction are typically threatened or endangered in the wild. However, reintroduction of a species can also be for pest control; for example, wolves being reintroduced to a wild area to curb an overpopulation of deer. Because reintroduction may involve returning native species to localities where they had been extirpated, some prefer the term "reestablishment".
The European tree frog is a small tree frog. As traditionally defined, it was found throughout much of Europe, Asia and northern Africa, but based on molecular genetic and other data several populations formerly included in it are now recognized as separate species, limiting the true European tree frog to Europe from France to Poland and Greece.
The European pond turtle, also called commonly the European pond terrapin and the European pond tortoise, is a species of long-living freshwater turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is endemic to the Western Palearctic.
The pool frog is a European frog in the family Ranidae. Its specific name was chosen by the Italian herpetologist Lorenzo Camerano in 1882, in order to honour his master Michele Lessona.
The agile frog is a European frog in the genus Rana of the true frog family, Ranidae.
Shirvan National Park — is a national park of Azerbaijan. It was established on July 5, 2003 within the territory of Salyan Rayon administrative districts. Its surface area is 54,373.5 hectares (543.735 km2).
The island of Great Britain, along with the rest of the archipelago known as the British Isles, has a largely temperate climate. It contains a relatively small fraction of the world's wildlife. The biota was severely diminished in the last ice age, and shortly thereafter was separated from the continent by the English Channel's formation. Since then, humans have hunted the most dangerous forms to extinction, though domesticated forms such as the dog and the pig remain. The wild boar has subsequently been reintroduced as a meat animal.
The wildlife of Israel includes the flora and fauna of Israel, which is extremely diverse due to the country's location between the temperate and the tropical zones, bordering the Mediterranean Sea in the west and the desert in the east. Species such as the Syrian brown bear and the Arabian ostrich have become extinct in Israel because of their loss of habitat. As of May 2007, 190 nature reserves have been established in Israel.
Pleistocene rewilding is the advocacy of the reintroduction of extant Pleistocene megafauna, or the close ecological equivalents of extinct megafauna. It is an extension of the conservation practice of rewilding, which aims to restore functioning, self-sustaining ecosystems through practices that may include species reintroductions.
Rewilding is a form of ecological restoration aimed at increasing biodiversity and restoring natural processes. It differs from other forms of ecological restoration in that rewilding aspires to reduce human influence on ecosystems. It is also distinct from other forms of restoration in that, while it places emphasis on recovering geographically specific sets of ecological interactions and functions that would have maintained ecosystems prior to human influence, rewilding is open to novel or emerging ecosystems which encompass new species and new interactions.
In the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, Carl Linnaeus described the Amphibia as:
Animals that are distinguished by a body cold and generally naked; stern and expressive countenance; harsh voice; mostly lurid color; filthy odor; a few are furnished with a horrid poison; all have cartilaginous bones, slow circulation, exquisite sight and hearing, large pulmonary vessels, lobate liver, oblong thick stomach, and cystic, hepatic, and pancreatic ducts: they are deficient in diaphragm, do not transpire (sweat), can live a long time without food, are tenatious of life, and have the power of reproducing parts which have been destroyed or lost; some undergo a metamorphosis; some cast (shed) their skin; some appear to live promiscuously on land or in the water, and some are torpid during the winter.
Wyoming is home to 12 amphibian species and 22 species of reptiles.
The Eurasian beaver has been the successful subject of a century of official and unapproved species reintroduction programs in Europe and Asia. Beavers had been driven to the point of near extinction in Eurasia by humans trapping and hunting them for their meat, fur and castoreum. The reintroductions and conservation led in 2008, to the IUCN assessing the Eurasian beaver as being of "least concern" on its red list.
Derek Gow is a UK-based reintroduction expert, farmer and author known for his work with watervoles, white storks, wildcats, and Eurasian beavers.
Codole Reservoir is a reservoir in the Haute-Corse department of France, on the island of Corsica. It supplies water for drinking and irrigation. The reservoir and its immediate surroundings are important as a biotope that offers habitat for many species of birds, reptiles and amphibians