EVENING TELEGRAPH (Peterborough, UK) 15 October 07 Hampton newts are the stars of new TV show (Jemma Walton)

Thousands of tiny, slimy Hampton residents are going to be the stars of a TV show being shown next week.

This isn't a rude joke at the expense of the people living in one of the city's plushest areas – it's the truth.

Because there are 30,000 Great Crested Newts living a stone's throw from the ever-expanding Hampton building works, and they are the subject of an episode of Alan Titchmarsh's latest series, The Nature of Britain.

Since being discovered on the Hampton building site, the newts have been moved to a nature reserve close-by, and the programme will reveal how humans and the newts are able to live happily side by side.

"Local people have always known there are newts on this site, and people in their 50s and 60s say they can remember playing with them here when they were growing up," said Daniel Piec, Froglife's head of conservation.

Before work began to build 8,000 homes on the site it was discovered that the unique landscape of hummocks and ponds left behind by the London Brick Company was the perfect habitat for one of our rarest amphibians.

More than 30,000 Great Crested Newts were discovered on the site along with other threatened species such as toads and water voles.

One other surprise was that the water in the ponds was so pure rare plants like bearded stonewort grow, which isn't found anywhere else apart from a Scottish loch.

Now developers and conservationists, particularly the charity, Froglife, are working together closely to ensure there is room to make homes for wildlife and people, and the wildlife has been relocated to a nature reserve a short distance from where The Hamptons will end.

Design features such as newt tunnels help insure the endangered creatures don't come to harm, and knee-high metal fences make sure that they don't hop out and into the building site.

This means that anyone buying a house in that area will have Europe's largest group of Great Crested Newts for neighbours, and they are neighbours much cherished by wildlife groups because in recent years they have become so endangered.

"Great Crested Newts are very endangered due to a couple of factors," said Daniel. "They have lost their habitat because of intensification of farming practices. Breeding ponds are either being filled in for town development or farming, or are just neglected.

"Also, ponds have flooded, meaning fish such as sticklebacks have taken over and forced the newts out."

Great Crested Newts are black with yellowy tummies covered in big black blotches. Males also have a jagged crest running along their backs, which is easier to spot during the mating season, when they flash it at females to get them interested.

"Each newt's stomach is like a human fingerprint," said Daniel.
Hampton newts are the stars of new TV show

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