Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust 'disappointed' by 4x4 damage
'Very upsetting'
A video of the damage was taken on Friday morning by a visitor and Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust believes it happened the previous night."We are really disappointed to see this damage caused to our land," a trust spokesperson said."We are in a biodiversity crisis, with limited space set aside for nature. Spaces like Sapperton Valley are crucial to our cause."Staff and volunteers have worked hard over a number of years to create this important habitat for wildlife, seeing it undone by a few irresponsible 4x4 users is very upsetting."
The trust said in addition to providing feeding areas for bats and birds, Sapperton Valley hosts rare plants and invertebrates.Molluscs, including the protected species of the mountain bulin and Roman snail, and the silky snail, which is hairy, also call the valley home, as does the grass snake."These wet grasslands provide an important role in slowing the flow of the river Frome in high flows, thereby reducing flood risk downstream," the trust said."This damage undoes a lot of the hard work of staff and volunteers to create this habitat which helps both wildlife and humans."The BBC has contacted Gloucestershire Police for comment.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
a day ago
- The National
Archaeologists discover 2000-year-old Roman road in Scottish park
Volunteers, along with archeologists, have been excavating King's Park for more than eight years and have discovered a roundhouse that likely survived the Roman invasion. Along with the roundhouse, archeologists have unearthed a road near the roundhouse, which experts believe would have led to a nearby hillfort. According to Dr Murray Cook, an archaeologist for Stirling, Falkirk and South Lanarkshire councils, who led the excavation, the owners of the roundhouse were likely a wealthy family who survived the genocide of Scots ordered by the Roman emperor Septimius Severus. READ MORE: Scotland's art sector set to hold landmark gathering amid funding cuts He said that there had been a break in roundhouse settlements during that period, which suggests there was a genocide of Scots and that radiocarbon dates indicate that the building existed before and after the Roman invasion. 'I think we're looking at an elite family that survived the Roman invasions,' Dr Cook said. 'They may prosper under Rome, so they're probably on the side of Rome.' (Image: Dr Murray Cook) Dr Cook said the discovery of the road shows the roundhouse was oriented towards the hillfort and that the family which owned it was probably 'emulating' the Romans with their own road, which likely joined the Romans. He added that they likely would have taken 'Rome's coin' and would have been on the side of Rome, and that is probably why they survived the genocide. The archeology team have only excavated around 30% of the roundhouse, which they believe was built using stone from a local quarry. They also found an 'exotic piece of technology' which was purposely placed in the middle of the road leading to the roundhouse as a 'status symbol'– a rotary quern. Dr Cook said it was likely an 'expensive' piece of equipment which was used to grind seeds or flour and was likely imported from elsewhere in the country. (Image: Dr Murray Cook) 'They put it in a prominent position in the road, so as you approach the house, you see it. This is, this is them making some kind of statement about who they are,' he said. 'It might be to do with their wealth. Maybe it's a religious significance, maybe it's a fertility goddess, but they're signalling, just as you might put a Lamborghini in your drive, to everybody that comes to visit that we can afford this stuff.' The rotary quern has since been removed from the site and will be analysed and tested to see where the stone came from, so that researchers are able to determine what part of the country it was imported from. The roundhouse likely survived the Roman emperor Septimius Severus' first campaign after it seemed to successfully subjugate the Caledonians and the Maeatae, the two main tribal groups in the region of Falkirk, Stirling, and Perthshire. However, in 210 AD, the Maeatae rebelled, which led Severus to give the genocidal order. According to researchers, when asked by one of his officers about what they should do with any prisoners, Severus replied: 'You should kill everyone, even the babes in their mothers' wombs'. 'We're not quite sure if it's politics, if it's propaganda, but for the next 50 to 80 years, there's a break in the Scottish settlement pattern,' Dr Murray explained. (Image: Dr Murray Cook) 'When people in Scotland kind of re-emerge onto the historical record, it's the Picts. 'Then the Picts spent the next 100 years battering the Romans, and eventually the Romans decided to abandon the whole of Britain, at around 410. 'That's the traditional narrative that the Romans committed a genocide. It bought them 80 years of peace, but then the next 120 years after that, they're battered.' Stirling Council leader Gerry McGarvey welcomed the discoveries and thanked all the volunteers for helping to shed more light on Stirling's past. He said: 'This latest discovery of a Roman presence in Kings Park is another reminder that Stirling's remarkable history and heritage stretches back millennia. 'There can be few greenspaces in Scotland that have been the scene of so many key historical events, something that always crosses my mind when I visit the park.'
The National
a day ago
- The National
Historic 140-year-old metal bridge in Inverness closes
During a routine inspection of the city's Infirmary Bridge, part of the structure, called a hanger, had been found to be sheared and has since been closed due to concerns for public safety Following further examination, a small number of similar defects on other hangers, which hold the bottom cord of the bridge deck, were found. Highland Council said it was in the process of appointing a contractor to carry out the repairs on the crossing, which bridges the River Ness, but did not confirm a timescale for the work to be carried out. READ MORE: 2000-year-old Roman road and roundhouse discovered in Scottish park A statement issued by the council said: 'Infirmary Bridge was closed last week following a failure in one of the hangers. 'We are currently in the process of appointing a contractor to undertake repairs to allow the bridge to be reopened. 'We have identified a small number of similar defects on other hangers, and these will also be included in the repair works. 'We cannot commit to an exact timescale at the moment, but we are working to reopen the bridge as soon as possible.' Highland Council had planned to begin repairs to the bridge last year but delayed the work as officials said the scheme had been pushed back because money was needed for other projects.
The National
a day ago
- The National
Archaeologists discover 2000-year-old Roman road and roundhouse
Volunteers, along with archeologists, have been excavating King's Park for more than eight years and have discovered a roundhouse that likely survived the Roman invasion. Along with the roundhouse, archeologists have unearthed a road near the roundhouse, which experts believe would have led to a nearby hillfort. According to Dr Murray Cook, an archaeologist for Stirling, Falkirk and South Lanarkshire councils, who led the excavation, the owners of the roundhouse were likely a wealthy family who survived the genocide of Scots ordered by the Roman emperor Septimius Severus. READ MORE: Scotland's art sector set to hold landmark gathering amid funding cuts He said that there had been a break in roundhouse settlements during that period, which suggests there was a genocide of Scots and that radiocarbon dates indicate that the building existed before and after the Roman invasion. 'I think we're looking at an elite family that survived the Roman invasions,' Dr Cook said. 'They may prosper under Rome, so they're probably on the side of Rome.' (Image: Dr Murray Cook) Dr Cook said the discovery of the road shows the roundhouse was oriented towards the hillfort and that the family which owned it was probably 'emulating' the Romans with their own road, which likely joined the Romans. He added that they likely would have taken 'Rome's coin' and would have been on the side of Rome, and that is probably why they survived the genocide. The archeology team have only excavated around 30% of the roundhouse, which they believe was built using stone from a local quarry. They also found an 'exotic piece of technology' which was purposely placed in the middle of the road leading to the roundhouse as a 'status symbol' - a rotary quern. Dr Cook said it was likely an 'expensive' piece of equipment which was used to grind seeds or flour and was likely imported from elsewhere in the country. (Image: Dr Murray Cook) 'They put it in a prominent position in the road, so as you approach the house, you see it. This is, this is them making some kind of statement about who they are,' he said. 'It might be to do with their wealth. Maybe it's a religious significance, maybe it's a fertility goddess, but they're signaling, just as you might put a Lamborghini in your drive, to everybody that comes to visit that we can afford this stuff.' The rotary quern has since been removed from the site and will be analysed and tested to see where the stone came from, so that researchers are able to determine what part of the country it was imported from. The roundhouse likely survived the Roman emperor Septimius Severus' first campaign after it seemed to successfully subjugate the Caledonians and the Maeatae, the two main tribal groups in the region of Falkirk, Stirling, and Perthshire. However, in 210 AD, the Maeatae rebelled, which led Severus to give the genocidal order. According to researchers, when asked by one of his officers about what they should do with any prisoners, Severus replied: 'You should kill everyone, even the babes in their mothers' wombs'. 'We're not quite sure if it's politics, if it's propaganda, but for the next 50 to 80 years, there's a break in the Scottish settlement pattern,' Dr Murray explained. (Image: Dr Murray Cook) 'When people in Scotland kind of re-emerge onto the historical record, it's the Picts. 'Then the Picts spent the next 100 years battering the Romans, and eventually the Romans decided to abandon the whole of Britain, at around 410. 'That's the traditional narrative that the Romans committed a genocide. It bought them 80 years of peace, but then the next 120 years after that, they're battered.' Stirling Council leader Gerry McGarvey welcomed the discoveries and thanked all the volunteers for helping to shed more light on Stirling's past. He said: 'This latest discovery of a Roman presence in Kings Park is another reminder that Stirling's remarkable history and heritage stretches back millennia. 'There can be few greenspaces in Scotland that have been the scene of so many key historical events, something that always crosses my mind when I visit the park.'
