Cardiff Bay Wetlands Reserve
Encyclopedia
Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay is the area created by the Cardiff Barrage in South Cardiff, the capital of Wales. The regeneration of Cardiff Bay is now widely regarded as one of the most successful regeneration projects in the United Kingdom. The Bay is supplied by two rivers to form a freshwater lake round the...
in the city of Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
. It covers an area of approximately 8 hectares (19.8 acres). The area was officially opened as a wildlife reserve on 25 July 2002 in what was previously an area of Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
(SSSI) up until the opening of the Cardiff Bay Barrage
Cardiff Bay Barrage
The Cardiff Bay Barrage lies across the mouth of Cardiff Bay, Wales between Queen Alexandra Dock and Penarth Head. It was one of the largest civil engineering projects in Europe during construction in the 1990s.-History:...
in April 2001. The area had previously been salt marsh
Salt marsh
A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...
, but the Barrage created 200 hectares of freshwater lake, and from this the reserve was developed.
Construction
The site was chosen by the Cardiff Harbour AuthorityCardiff Harbour Authority
The Cardiff Harbour Authority was formed as part of Cardiff Council on 1 April 2000. It took over responsibility from Cardiff Bay Development Corporation for management of the barrage, the inland bay and the River Taff and Ely....
, who manage Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay is the area created by the Cardiff Barrage in South Cardiff, the capital of Wales. The regeneration of Cardiff Bay is now widely regarded as one of the most successful regeneration projects in the United Kingdom. The Bay is supplied by two rivers to form a freshwater lake round the...
, to create an important new environment from the previous salt marsh
Salt marsh
A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...
, and to help compensate for the loss of the Cardiff Bay mudflats.
Edmund Nuttall
BAM Nuttall Limited is a construction and civil engineering company headquartered in Camberley, United Kingdom. It has been involved in a portfolio of road, rail, nuclear, and other major projects worldwide...
Ltd. won the GB£120,000 contract to build the Reserve, and work was completed by the end of November 2003.. In 2001, a landscape architect, Phil Williams from the Landscape Institute
Landscape Institute
The Landscape Institute is a British professional body for landscape architects. Founded in 1929 as the Institute of Landscape Architects, it was granted a Royal Charter in 1997. The Institute aims to promote landscape architecture, and to regulate the profession with a code of conduct that...
, was appointed. He said:
Since the Wetlands Reserve was constructed, tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s of debris had flowed down from the River Taff
River Taff
The River Taff is a large river in Wales. It rises as two rivers in the Brecon Beacons — the Taf Fechan and the Taf Fawr — before joining to form the Taff north of Merthyr Tydfil...
and collected near the reserve, so the Cardiff Harbour Authority
Cardiff Harbour Authority
The Cardiff Harbour Authority was formed as part of Cardiff Council on 1 April 2000. It took over responsibility from Cardiff Bay Development Corporation for management of the barrage, the inland bay and the River Taff and Ely....
had to build a 450 metre floating boom to prevent debris from entering the bay.
The reserve
Wetlands are a transitional habitat between water and land; they provide an important habitat for many bird, fish, animal, and plant species.The Cardiff Bay Wetlands Reserve can be found near St David's Hotel
St David's Hotel & Spa
St David's Hotel & Spa is a five-star hotel situated in Cardiff, Wales, just off the A4232 road, and close to Cardiff Bay railway station. It was the first five-star hotel in Wales. The building features a sweeping sail-topped roof and a lofty atrium lobby....
close to Mermaid Quay
Mermaid Quay
Mermaid Quay is a waterfront shopping and leisure district in Cardiff Bay, Cardiff, Wales. The 14,000 sq m development was opened in 1999, and includes restaurants, bars, cafes and shops.- Eating & Drinking at Mermaid Quay :...
.
Cardiff Bay Barrage
The Cardiff Bay Barrage lies across the mouth of Cardiff Bay, Wales between Queen Alexandra Dock and Penarth Head. It was one of the largest civil engineering projects in Europe during construction in the 1990s.-History:...
, this area was made up of mudflats and salt marsh
Salt marsh
A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...
. The wetlands reserve was created in the new freshwater lake.
The reserve is a biodiversity
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...
hot-spot within Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay is the area created by the Cardiff Barrage in South Cardiff, the capital of Wales. The regeneration of Cardiff Bay is now widely regarded as one of the most successful regeneration projects in the United Kingdom. The Bay is supplied by two rivers to form a freshwater lake round the...
. The reedbed, a UK Biodiversity Action Plan habitat, along with other aquatic plants, are very productive vegetation.
A number of bird species including Reed Bunting
Reed Bunting
The Reed Bunting, Emberiza schoeniclus, is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae....
s, Reed Warbler
Reed Warbler
The Eurasian Reed Warbler, or just Reed Warbler, Acrocephalus scirpaceus, is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It breeds across Europe into temperate western Asia. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa....
s, and Sedge Warbler
Sedge Warbler
The Sedge Warbler is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It is a medium-sized warbler with a brown, streaked back and wings and a distinct pale supercilium. Sedge Warblers are migratory, crossing the Sahara to get from their European and Asian breeding grounds to spend winter in Africa...
s, use this habitat in which to build nests. Reedbed is not only important for birds, but also for invertebrates, fish, and amphibians.
Interesting birds and wildlife can be seen here – not only in the summer, but year-round. The types of birds and their activity level will vary depending on the season. In the spring, when some birds breed on the Reserve, birds can be seen and heard singing – especially early in the morning. The autumn and winter bring visitors like Teal
Common Teal
The Eurasian Teal or Common Teal is a common and widespread duck which breeds in temperate Eurasia and migrates south in winter. The Eurasian Teal is often called simply the Teal due to being the only one of these small dabbling ducks in much of its range...
and Stonechat.
The Wetlands food web
The various species which inhabit the Cardiff Bay Wetlands exist in a dynamic food webFood web
A food web depicts feeding connections in an ecological community. Ecologists can broadly lump all life forms into one of two categories called trophic levels: 1) the autotrophs, and 2) the heterotrophs...
. Very small creatures such as midge larvae
Chironomidae
Chironomidae are a family of nematoceran flies with a global distribution. They are closely related to the Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, and Thaumaleidae...
and worms live in the mud underneath the wetlands. These are eaten by several bird species such as Snipe
Snipe
A snipe is any of about 25 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill and crypsis plumage. The Gallinago snipes have a nearly worldwide distribution, the Lymnocryptes Jack Snipe is restricted to Asia and Europe and the...
. Other insects also use this transition zone between water and land to spend various phases of their lives – dragonflies live in the aquatic zone as larvae and adults. Sometimes Black-tailed Skimmer
Black-tailed Skimmer
The Black-tailed Skimmer, Orthetrum cancellatum, is a European and Asian dragonfly. It occurs nearly all over Europe except northern UK and Scandinavia, to the east the range extends to Kashmir and Mongolia....
s can be observed hunting their territories in the reen part of the reserve.
The relationship between plants and animals – birds or insects, can be surprising. Cinnabar moth
Cinnabar moth
The Cinnabar moth is a brightly coloured arctiid moth, found in Europe and western and central Asia. It has been introduced into New Zealand, Australia and North America to control poisonous ragwort, which its larvae feed on. The moth is named after the red mineral cinnabar because of the red...
s feed on ragwort
Ragwort
Ragwort is a very common wild flower in the family Asteraceae that is native to northern Eurasia, usually in dry, open places, and has also been widely distributed as a weed elsewhere....
whilst in their caterpillar phase.
Fish are also visible in the shallow areas of the Reserve. A number of coarse fish species benefit from the warm water and abundance of submerged aquatic vegetation which exists almost exclusively in this part of the Bay. The water provides excellent nursery conditions, cover, and food for small fish.
Some species of bird spend a lot of time in the reserve because they can feed on fish there. Grey Heron
Grey Heron
The Grey Heron , is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It is resident in the milder south and west, but many birds retreat in winter from the ice in colder regions...
s and Kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfishers are a group of small to medium sized brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species being found in the Old World and Australia...
s are often seen on the reserve.
Access
River Taff
The River Taff is a large river in Wales. It rises as two rivers in the Brecon Beacons — the Taf Fechan and the Taf Fawr — before joining to form the Taff north of Merthyr Tydfil...
. At the end of this footpath, a boardwalk goes out into the water, allowing good viewing across the Reserve, and also provides a good spot for watching the fish shoaling in the shallow waters.
Although public access is not permitted onto the main body of the reserve, this is to allow excellent breeding and feeding conditions to develop for the species present. It is possible to view many bird species from the public area with the naked eye, and binoculars will allow an even better birding experience.
Also visible is a floating boom that surrounds the reserve. Under conditions of high river flows on the Rivers Taff and Ely
River Ely
The River Ely is a river in South Wales flowing generally south east, from Tonyrefail to the capital city of Cardiff.-Course of the river:...
, water-borne debris can be washed down into Cardiff Bay from the upstream catchments. This boom prevents this debris from entering the reserve, and impacting upon the species that are found there.