LADDERS have been installed down drains in a bid to save amphibians and reptiles from a "slow, lingering death".
The equipment has been put in place at two sites in Dundee and Carnoustie after concern that frogs, toads and newts were being trapped under ground level with no means of escape.
A total of 37 ladders which are made of steel sheets and bent to form a gradual incline before being covered in jute have been installed to allow the reptiles to climb up to the underside of the drain cover.
Friends of Angus Herpetofauna, a group set up to monitor amphibian and reptile species, have been given permission by Angus Council to fit the ladders. During their work to install the ladders, they found 20 frogs, 30 toads and six newts at the two sites. The animals were all released at nearby breeding ponds.
Trevor Rose, of Friends of Angus Herpetofauna, said: "Hundreds of thousands of amphibians die a slow, lingering death in gulleypots every year in the UK.
"It is hoped, if the ladders are proved to be a successful solution, that they could be fitted to gulleypots everywhere and provide amphibians with a fighting chance of escape, and help to halt the decline their ever-falling numbers."
The Friends of Angus Herpetofauna group had previously launched a fight against a cycling path amid concerns that it would affect a lizard habitat. Angus Council altered the route slightly in response to the complaints.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article