The area currently supports a variety of wildlife particularly the boundary hedgerows and at Popley Ponds adjoining the Southern boundary of Marnel Park. The Popley ponds SINC (Site of Importance for Nature Conservation) are a known habitat of the Great Crested Newts (Triturus Cristatus), a European protected species. The impact of development on the newts has been of major importance to the Council, David Wilson Homes, English Nature, the Environment Agency and other conservation bodies and partly in response to these concerns, a protected species management plan has been agreed as part of the S106 agreement for Marnel Park. Detail of the work done to protect the newts is outlined separately.
Fauna
In addition to Great Crested Newts, the area is also home to other mammals, including badgers, rabbits, roe and muntjac deer. A badger survey was conducted on the site in 2000, with only one sett found. Badgers appear to move on to the application site from the north, through Marnel Dell and through fields around Kiln Farm. No evidence of other protected species has been recorded within the sites.
There are no buildings within the area which are known to provide roosting potential for bats, although Serotine and Natter’s Bats have been recorded feeding over the adjacent Popley Ponds. The site is also a rich source of food for smaller species such as mice and voles.
A total of nearly twenty different bird species have also been recorded within the area. These include the amber-list species of Blackbird, Dunnock and Starling and the red-list species of Skylark.
Details of these bird classifications can be found using this link.
Good quality habitat for invertebrates is deemed to be limited on the site. The arable fields are fairly inhospitable and likely to be treated with insecticides. Concentrations of invertebrates are most likely to be found along hedgerows, mature trees and woodland.
Flora
The wider landscape of the Hampshire Downs Natural Area supports the richest and most diverse arable flora of any Natural Area in England including species such as the nationally rare pheasant’s-eye and Cut-leaved germander, plus a further five nationally scarce species. The loamy, chalk soils between Basingstoke, Winchester and Andover are home to some of Britain’s rarest arable annuals, including: Prickly Poppy, Dense-flowered Fumitory and the Narrow-fruited cornsalad.
However, no rare or scarce arable weed species have been recorded in the area. The species recorded are listed as locally common through to abundant in the Hampshire flora. The hedgerows within the area are fairly diverse, generally ranging from six to eleven qualifying woody species. Despite its origin as plantation woodland, Marnel Dell adds an important element of habitat to the large arable Popley area.
