Routeway Ecologies

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  • Created by: JBubble
  • Created on: 30-01-17 16:29
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  • Routeway Ecologies
    • Side Notes
      • Fast moving vehicles create strong gusts of wind, dispersing seeds along the route way (E.G. Oxford Ragwort)
      • They can act as wildlife corridors
    • Roads and Motorways
      • Exhaust fumes are rich in Nitrogen, may encourage growth of wildflowers
        • Increases presence of insects and other animals that feed off of them
      • Embankments act as habitats (E.G. Scavenging birds)
        • Often steep to limit noise pollution on nearby farms or in nearby towns
          • Intentionally planted to bind the soil (E.G. with Hazel or Willow)
      • Management can reduce the amount of wildflowers (E.G. Mowing)
        • Highways Agency planted 1.8 billion Rowan trees various grasses to create habitats alongside motorways (E.G. For mice)
      • Road kill presents easy food sources on the side of roads for birds of prey (E.G Kestrels on the M4 Corridor)
    • Canals
      • Attract various things as they're one long pond essentially
        • Water fowl (E.G. Ducks)
        • Water loving insects (E.G. Dragonflies)
        • Aquatic plants (E.G. Yellow Flag Iris)
      • Human interaction along pathways (E.G. Footpath erosion, cutting back brambles)
        • Minimal interference on water except for canal boats
    • Railways
      • Enables animals to move around the city safely
      • Limited human interaction as tracks are fenced off
        • Attracts wildlife (E.G. badgers and urban foxes)
        • Brambles becomes nesting sites for birds
        • Limited interaction allows species like Foxglove to establish themselves through seed dispersal
      • Example of restricted maintenance: Network Rail
        • Vegetation between the tracks is cleared to keep signals clear and railways safe(Deflects succession)
        • Leaf mulch and trees near tracks are removed in autumn to make tracks safer and not slippery
          • Removes nutrients from the nutrient cycle
          • Less vegetation = less interception - increased flood risk

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