Epress.am News from Armenia
Conservationists say wildlife will take at least 20 years to recover after a fire devastated heathland in Dorset, reports Guardian.co.uk.
It took almost 200 firefighters to prevent the blaze at Upton Heath in Poole from reaching local homes.
But they could not stop it wreaking havoc at one of the most important wildlife sites in England at the height of the breeding season.
One police officer said it looked like the heath had been hit by a nuclear explosion and some wildlife volunteers wept as they scoured the site looking for animals and birds that had survived.
Upton Heath is home to all six native reptiles and a nesting site for birds including stonechats, nightjars and Dartford warblers.
Simon Cripps, the chief executive of the Dorset Wildlife Trust, said: “Upton Heath is one of the most important sites in the country for heathland habitat. This is a disaster that will set wildlife back by 20 years or more on this important site.
“So far we have recovered one common lizard alive out of the thousands of reptiles on the heath. Normally you would find the burnt remains of these creatures but this fire was so intense that there is just nothing left to find. This is a critical time for wildlife on the heath, when the birds are nesting.”
Around 1,000 square metres of heathland was affected. “The fire was like lava flow from a volcano, a line of fire that devastated anything in its path,” said Cripps. “The landscape today is just a great swath of black. It looks like a lost planet.”
Police are investigating how the fire began and are looking at reports that two youths were seeing running from the scene.
