Conservation & Ecology
Signs were made indicating that there are ground nesting birds present and a security guard made sure that the nest was protected at dusk
,,, the nest site was roped off and protected by course marshals
immediately roped off as this section was due to be strimmed down and used as spectator access for the fast approaching Open Championship. As the weeks passed, we observed the
nest from a distance and it was plain to see that the chicks were doing well by the amount of times their parents came backwards and forwards with food in their beaks.
During the run-up to the Open, however, it
was obvious that the roped off nest area needed to be far larger as both parents were becoming more and more agitated by the amount of foot traffic past their offsprings’ nest site; they were also finding it difficult to feed the chicks as the sheer amount of spectators made it almost impossible to
make it to the nest without being spotted and subsequently photographed! It was therefore decided that the footpath adjacent to the rear of the tee should now be used for emergencies only and the roped off area was now stretched to about the 70m² mark. The championship tee was monitored by
five marshals throughout the tournament and each one was briefed that no one was allowed into the area where the nest was located. Signs were made indicating that there are ground nesting birds present and a security guard made sure that the nest was protected at dusk. On the Sunday of the Open, I was
Hares and rabbits made a hasty retreat to other courses ©HansHillewaert
informed by the marshals that they had to escort a very small and scruffy looking chick off the championship tee and place it back into the long grass from where it came. I managed to catch a glimpse of two chicks early Monday morning (the final day of the championship) and I could hear another one chirping away in the gorse behind the tee. If three chicks made it, then I think you could describe the operation as a success - I like to think all four will make it to adulthood, but nature can be cruel sometimes and not all young birds reach maturity. Another interesting event
A small patch of Purple Milk Vetch can be found on the Old Course
happened during the approach of the Open and that was a pair of oystercatchers had made a nest on the roof of the Tom Morris building. This building is a hive of activity most days and it is where we house our range of clothing; it also has a succulent roof which attracts a diverse cross section of wildlife, including bees, butterflies and many other invertebrates, but the oystercatchers made it their home for around four weeks - I have to say that they were most welcome and we hope to see them back next year, or sooner!
During the run up to the championship,
there were one or two interesting plants noted, namely orchids and the increasingly rare purple milk vetch. The orchid varieties included common spotted, northern marsh and early marsh and were seen across the Links (including the Castle Course), whereas the purple milk vetch could be seen on the New, Jubilee and a small patch on the Old Course.
The Operation Pollinator sections hold a
healthy amount of maiden pinks and there’s a Corncockle growing peacefully on the Eden Course, so the flora remained intact throughout the competition. I feel that the only flora damaged by the competition was the actual grass on the walkways, but the Old Course team are amongst the finest, so they will have these back in top condition by the time the Dunhill rolls in to town. It is safe to say that a competition of the
Open’s magnitude is going to bring with it one or two victims in terms of organic materials, i.e. the flora onsite, however, it is also safe to say that the remaining wildlife benefitted from the competition, meaning that the majority of animals had a buffet of food from all the scraps which were dropped throughout the day. Gulls, rooks and crows made the most of the tournament by hoovering up any chips and pasties which found their way onto the floor, whilst the foxes took the rest! All the stands and scoreboards had
material placed around them so no swallows or house martins could build a nest beneath the eaves, whilst the marshals took great pride in keeping any foot traffic away from the long rough and roped off areas. The greenkeeping team worked wonders on the golf course and it is fair to say that the Home of Golf and the Open Championship take the on-course wildlife and its subsequent protection quite seriously! Roll on the Dunhill Links Championship!
Corncockle PC AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2015 I 115
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