Editing Lake District (section)

== Wildlife ==
[[File:Red squirrels warning signs, Lake District.jpg|thumb|Road warning signals for [[red squirrels]]; the Lake District is one of the few places in England where red squirrels have a sizeable population.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Red squirrels |url=http://www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-5TPCW3 |work=Forestry Commission |access-date=26 August 2012 |archive-date=3 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003014241/http://www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-5TPCW3 |url-status=live }}</ref>]]
[[File:Fell pony.jpg|thumb|upright|A [[Fell pony]] on the [[fells]], native to [[North West England]]]]
The Lake District is home to a great variety of wildlife, because of its varied topography, lakes, and forests. It provides a home for the [[red squirrel]] and colonies of [[sundew]] and [[butterwort]], two of the few [[carnivorous plant]]s native to Britain. The Lake District is a major sanctuary for the red squirrel and has the largest population in England (out of the estimated 140,000 red squirrels in the United Kingdom, compared with about 2.5&nbsp;million [[Eastern gray squirrel|grey squirrels]]).<ref>{{Cite news |title=Prince launches innovative new drive to protect red squirrels |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/8330881/Prince-launches-innovative-new-drive-to-protect-red-squirrels.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110219105939/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/8330881/Prince-launches-innovative-new-drive-to-protect-red-squirrels.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=19 February 2011 |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=17 February 2011 |access-date=26 August 2012}}</ref>

The Lake District is home to a range of bird species,<ref>{{Cite news |title=Cumbria Bird Club |url=http://www.cumbriabirdclub.org.uk/ |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=8 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120708200640/http://www.cumbriabirdclub.org.uk/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and the [[Royal Society for the Protection of Birds|RSPB]] maintain a reserve in Haweswater.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Reserves – Haweswater |url=http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/h/haweswater/about.aspx |work=RSPB |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=23 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023052258/http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/h/haweswater/about.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> England's last nesting pair of [[golden eagle]]s was found in the Lake District; the female was last seen in 2004<ref>{{Cite news |title=Golden Eagle – Population Trends |url=http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/goldeneagle/population_trends.aspx |work=RSPB |access-date=26 August 2012 |archive-date=17 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017025446/http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/goldeneagle/population_trends.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> and the male was last seen in 2015.<ref>{{cite web |title=England's last golden eagle feared dead |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/apr/14/englands-last-golden-eagle-feared-dead#:~:text=Golden%20eagles%20arrived%20in%20the,moorlands%20and%20mountains%20of%20Scotland. |website=The Guardian | date=14 April 2016 |access-date=6 September 2022}}</ref> Following recolonisation attempts, a pair of [[osprey]]s nested in the Lake District for the first time in over 150 years near [[Bassenthwaite Lake]] during 2001. Ospreys now frequently migrate north from Africa in the spring to nest in the Lake District, and a total of 23 chicks have fledged in the area since 2001.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Osprey spotted in Cumbria at start of nesting season |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-17584430 |work=BBC News |date=2 April 2012 |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=24 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140424054716/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-17584430 |url-status=live }}</ref> Another raptor that has had recolonisation attempts is the [[red kite]] which, as of 2012, has a population of approximately 90 in the dense forest areas near [[Grizedale Forest|Grizedale]]<ref>{{Cite news |title=Red kites returned to Cumbria forest after 160 years |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-10849991 |work=BBC News |date=3 August 2010 |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=22 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140422110157/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-10849991 |url-status=live }}</ref> and successfully bred in 2014, the first breeding success in Cumbria in over 200 years.<ref>{{cite web |title=Red Kites breed in Cumbria after more than 200 years |url=https://www.birdguides.com/news/red-kites-breed-in-cumbria-after-more-than-200-years/ |website=BirdGuides |date=17 July 2014 |access-date=6 September 2022}}</ref> Conservationists hope the reintroduction will create a large population in the Lake District and in [[North West England]] where red kite numbers are low.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Grizedale Forest sees reintroduction of red kites |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-18073449 |work=BBC News |date=15 May 2012 |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=22 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722162728/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-18073449 |url-status=live }}</ref> Other bird species resident to the Lake District include the [[Common buzzard|buzzard]], [[White-throated dipper|dipper]], [[Peregrine falcon|peregrine]] and [[common raven]].<ref>{{Cite news |title=Haweswater – Star species |url=http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/h/haweswater/star_species.aspx |work=RSPB |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=29 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120829124844/http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/h/haweswater/star_species.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> Seasonal birds include the [[ring ouzel]] and the [[common redstart]].<ref>{{Cite news |title=Haweswater – Seasonal highlights |url=http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/h/haweswater/seasonal_highlights.aspx |work=RSPB |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=29 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120829123956/http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/h/haweswater/seasonal_highlights.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref>

The lakes of the Lake District support three rare and endangered species of fish. The [[Coregonus vandesius|vendace]] is found only in Derwent Water and, until 2008, Bassenthwaite Lake.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Ancient vendace fish saved from edge of extinction |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/3346740/Ancient-vendace-fish-saved-from-edge-of-extinction.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110415020122/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/3346740/Ancient-vendace-fish-saved-from-edge-of-extinction.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 April 2011 |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=9 July 2009 |access-date=3 September 2012}}</ref> Vendace have struggled in recent years with naturally occurring algae becoming a threat and the lakes gradually getting warmer.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Algae threatens rare fish |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2513699.stm |work=BBC News |date=27 November 2002 |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=5 March 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080305073548/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2513699.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>
Vendace have been moved to higher lakes on a number of occasions to preserve the species, notably in 2005 and 2011.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Endangered fish take to the air |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cumbria/4486024.stm |work=BBC News |date=30 November 2005 |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=14 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211214040646/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/cumbria/4486024.stm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Llamas move fish to cooler waters in Lake District |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-13042511 |work=BBC News |date=12 April 2011 |access-date=3 September 2012 |archive-date=27 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120327132836/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-13042511 |url-status=live }}</ref> The Lakes are also home to two other rare species: the [[schelly]], which lives in Brothers Water, Haweswater, Red Tarn and Ullswater, and the [[Arctic char]]r, which can be found in Buttermere, Coniston Water, Crummock Water, Ennerdale Water, Haweswater, Loweswater, Thirlmere, Wast Water, and Windermere.
[[File:CoregonusVandesius.jpg|thumb|left|The vendace (''[[Coregonus vandesius]]'') is England's rarest species of fish, and is found only in the Lake District.]]

In recent years, important changes have been made to fisheries byelaws covering the northwest region of England, to help protect some of the rarest fish species. In 2002, the [[Environment Agency]] introduced a new fisheries byelaw, banning the use of all freshwater fish as live or dead bait in 14 of the lakes in the Lake District: Bassenthwaite Lake, Brothers Water, Buttermere, Coniston Water, Crummock Water, Derwent Water, Ennerdale Water, Haweswater, Loweswater, Red Tarn, Thirlmere, Ullswater, Wast Water, and Windermere. Anglers not complying with the new byelaw can face fines of up to £2,500.

The lakes and waters of the Lake District do not naturally support as many species of fish as other similar habitats in the south of the country and elsewhere in Europe. Some fish that do thrive there are particularly at risk from the introduction of new species. The introduction of non-native fish can lead to the predation of the native fish fauna or competition for food. There is also the risk of disease being introduced, which can further threaten native populations. In some cases, the introduced species can disturb the environment so much that it becomes unsuitable for particular fish. For example, a major problem has been found with [[ruffe]]. This non-native fish has now been introduced into several lakes in recent years. It is known that ruffe eats the eggs of vendace, which are particularly vulnerable because of their long incubation period. This means that they are susceptible to predators for up to 120 days. The eggs of other fish, for example [[Rutilus|roach]], are only at risk for as little as three days.

The Lake District supports a distinctive montane [[lichen]] flora, with over 55 species recorded from high-level areas. Whilst less diverse than the [[Scottish Highlands]], the region contains several rare species, particularly in areas of base-rich rock. Brown Cove Tarn is of international importance, hosting several species that are rare throughout Europe. The Helvellyn range is particularly significant, with Brown Cove containing the richest lichen assemblages. Key species include ''[[Umbilicaria crustulosa]]'', which was first discovered in Langdale in 1889. The area's lichen communities have been impacted by heavy sheep [[grazing]] since the 14th century, resulting in less extensive mats than those found in the Scottish Highlands. The wet climate, with annual precipitation exceeding 4000mm in central areas, combined with [[acidic rock]] and intensive grazing, creates challenging conditions for lichen growth. However, some species persist in sheltered locations, particularly in gullies and on boulders around [[tarn (lake)|tarns]], where they form distinct zonation patterns related to water levels and exposure.<ref>{{cite journal |author-link=Oliver Gilbert (lichenologist) |last1=Gilbert |first1=O.L. |last2=Giavarini |first2=V.J. |title=The lichens of high ground in the English Lake District |journal=The Lichenologist |volume=25 |issue=2 |year=1993 |doi=10.1006/lich.1993.1023 |pages=147–164}}</ref>