The social media pages of the SVBG have been full of photos of various beasties found in the River over September – as well as the good folk having a good look at what is to be seen. This entry is from 11th September:
We are gathering information on various sorts of biodiversity in the valley to underpin any recommendations for action. Today some of us were being trained in measuring water quality in the river system by quantifying indicator river fly species. This will provide reliable data for organisations such as the Environment Agency. Thank you to Connor Goddard who drove down from Wiltshire Wildlife Trust to run the training. There were lots of positive indicator species, possibly the most interesting find was the young eel.
And from 25 September:
The SVBG has been monitoring the water quality in the River Sid and its tributaries since 2020 (https://sidvalleybiodiversity.org/category/river-sid/). Now we are working with the Freshwater Biological Association and The Riverfly Partnership to monitor the populations of 8 groups of invertebrates at various points in the river system each month. These creatures are called indicator species and act as a ‘canary in the coalmine’ by disappearing (dying) if there are significant pollution incidents. We surveyed the main river today near the Hare and Hounds about a mile down from its source. The water quality was good and we found most of the species that indicate there have been no recent pollution incidents.
Here’s a little video:
Here are some more beasties:
Sid Valley Biodiversity Group | Facebook
Young Eel but older than a newly arrived Elver.
Sid Valley Biodiversity Group | Facebook
Bullhead
Sid Valley Biodiversity Group | Facebook
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