News Art installation celebrates National Park’s 70 years Artists from Glassball, local schools, families, volunteers and National Park rangers are involved in a two-year arts and heritage project that is exploring the legacy of how the first National Park in the UK was formed. GUIDEline focuses on the north west boundary area (from north of Glossop to Marsden), and what it means to visit, live and work along a mark made on a map 70 years ago. Cora Glasser, lead artist at Glassball explains: “Our starting point was the original Park boundary document from 1951, which described the route in words alone. “One element of our project celebrating the official birthday of the Park’s formation involves creating 3D printed and wooden laser cut words from the original description to display along the National Park boundary on a Covid-safe walk. “Individuals and families can creatively arrange the words in suitable locations, photograph them and send the results in
Peregrines at 10 year high in the uplands
PHOTO: TIM MELLING
Goshawks and peregrines had a successful breeding season during 2020 in the Peak District’s uplands, according to a recent report. The Peak District Bird of Prey Initiative (BoPI) recorded 14 fledged young peregrines from six nests – the highest number for ten years – while an estimated 16-17 young goshawks fledged from nine known nests. There were mixed fortunes for both short-eared owls and merlins, and hen harriers did not return to nest in the study area in 2020 after successful breeding in previous years. Despite six incidents of illegal wildlife crime against birds of prey during the same period, efforts by the police and local gamekeepers have also recently secured the conviction of an egg-collector following a detailed investigation.
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www.peakdistrict.gov.uk
Get inspired along the National Park boundary with the GUIDEline project.
to the GUIDEline website or post on social media.” The GUIDEline website is growing as stories, recollections, LiDar scans, photographs, video and audio are being added. Join in and share your pictures on social media, use #GUIDEline. For more information or to share your
thoughts on how the boundary was created around Glossop, you can contact Cora Glasser by email: info@glassball.uk or visit www.guideline.org.uk GUIDEline is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Arts Council England, and is supported by the Peak District National Park Authority.
Helping a maiden in distress National Park ecologists, local plant experts and landowners have joined forces to save a plant from extinction. Maiden pink is a very rare Peak District plant with less than a handful of remaining sites. Rebekah Newman, ecologist, explains: “Maiden pink is a nationally nearthreatened species and after checking local records, we discovered that of the 17 populations recorded before 1990, there are now just four populations left. “Most species which grow alongside maiden pink are taller and fastergrowing so the plant’s survival is critically dependent on grazing or some other disturbance to allow it to successfully compete and survive. We are developing site management plans for all the remaining populations to ensure maiden pink’s survival.” Seed and cuttings have been taken from the wild populations and grown on in a local nursery.
Maiden pink to get a helping hand to thrive in the Peak District. Steve Furness of the Alpine Plant Centre in Calver says: “Our aim is to establish robust nursery populations so that we can bolster the existing populations with genetically identical but nursery grown plants. It’s like a zoo breeding programme for plants.” To celebrate the 70th year of the Peak District National Park a number of sites are to be planted with 70 maiden pink plants to boost existing populations and establish new ones.
