Why are wildlife attracted to golf courses? The simple answer is because golf courses provide habitat: food, water, and/or shelter. This is especially true in urban environments where there are not many other green spaces.
Are golf courses a significant wildlife resource?
However, it is becoming more widely accepted that golf courses represent a significant wildlife resource in an increasingly developed country like Britain .
How do golf courses affect the environment?
In addition, some golf courses will include protected habitats such as species-rich grassland and heathland. This means that, where a golf course wants to carry out a development (changes to buildings or the golf course itself), then ecology matters will need to be addressed in the planning process.
What is the relationship between golf courses and ecology?
An important fact with regard to golf courses and ecology is that they are based on a landscape scale (not just a field amongst a sea of arable crops) and have the potential to be home to mosaic of habitats and an array of species.
What happens if protected species are found on a golf course?
In short, if protected species are present on a golf course, then there are potential implications for the course owners and managers. The legislation also created a framework within which sites could be designated as protected areas; these are known as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
Are golf courses good for wildlife?
1) Golf Course Roughs And Trees Create Good Wildlife Habitat More than 70 percent of most golf courses are rough and non-play areas including natural grasses, trees and shrubs. Combined with the open areas of fairways and greens, the golf course is an attractive wildlife habitat.
Why golf courses are good for the environment?
Golf courses offer numerous opportunities to not only provide pleasant places to play, but also to protect drinking water, improve the water quality of on-site and surrounding lakes, streams, and rivers, support a variety of plants and wildlife, and protect the environment for future generations.
Do golf courses help the environment?
But golf courses also have great opportunities to make a positive impact. They can provide wildlife sanctuaries, preserve natural areas in urban environments, support native plants and wildlife, protect water resources, rehabilitate degraded landscapes and promote environmentally-positive management to the public.
How does golf impact the environment?
Land Footprint Golf requires more land per player than any other sport. Environmentalists say that developers destroy natural habitats to build courses, removing native species and contributing to soil erosion and sediment runoff to nearby bodies of water.
Are golf courses bad for water?
Courses dump often unregulated fertilisers and pesticides on their greenways to keep the grass looking unnaturally green. The fertilisers run off into bodies of water, causing a state of nutrient over-enrichment called eutrophication which results in algal blooms that destroy ecosystems.
Is golf a waste of land?
Golf courses account for more than 5.1 million acres of land worldwide. That land that could be used as wooded areas, farmland, animal habits, wetlands and countless other activities that are far more useful to society than golf. Golf courses use 13 trillion gallons of water every year.
Are golf courses big polluters?
The average golf course uses 312 gallons of water per day for maintenance of the grounds. As this water flows through the property, it can pick up contaminants such as petroleum, pesticides, and fertilizers.
What is the purpose of a golf course?
A golf course is the grounds where the sport of golf is played.
Why are golf courses important to wildlife?
The nature conservation community, in general, sees golf courses in much the same way as agricultural landscapes i.e. lacking in substantial wildlife potential because they comprise a large expanse of intensively managed grass. However, it is becoming more widely accepted that golf courses represent a significant wildlife resource in an increasingly developed country like Britain .#N#In many parts of the UK, green belt land, often including some valuable habitat, is increasingly under pressure from the need for more housing and industry, making recreational areas and gardens more important for our wildlife that is under ever more pressure. Golf courses also have a contribution to make and, with their large open spaces and areas of rough, water and out-of-play areas, have been described as 'a green lung' and 'a haven for wildlife'.#N#Plants and animals continue to amaze us with their ability to make the most of whatever is available. There are many examples, such as peregrine falcons nesting on cathedrals, foxes and badgers becoming urbanised and dragonflies in garden ponds - wildlife will utilise golf courses as they will urban areas.#N#Having said that, it is true that large areas of golf courses will always be poor in wildlife terms, however, it is the areas away from the greens and fairways that provide opportunities. It is these areas where, if managed appropriately, that really can contribute to biodiversity.#N#As the green belt gets slowly eaten away, and the importance of golf courses becomes recognised, more information is being published on the wildlife value of golf courses. Good advice on management has been produced by bodies such as the Scottish Golf Environment Group (2002, 2009), Tanner and Gange (2005), Tew (2004) and, not least, golf's governing body, the Royal & Ancient, in conjunction with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (2009).#N#The R&A have a key objective that golf course management is "... optimising the playing quality of the golf course in harmony with the conservation of its natural environment under economically sound and socially responsible management".#N#So, change is afoot, with golf courses becoming places where wildlife should be able to thrive alongside men and women playing a game they love. An important fact with regard to golf courses and ecology is that they are based on a landscape scale (not just a field amongst a sea of arable crops) and have the potential to be home to mosaic of habitats and an array of species.#N#In terms of addressing wildlife and conservation on a golf course, there are two key issues that come into play:#N#• Protected habitats and species - these may be found on a golf course and could have legal implications for management and development.#N#• General biodiversity value - there is potential to manage golf courses such that they maintain and increase the wildlife they support.
Why is golf important to ecology?
An important fact with regard to golf courses and ecology is that they are based on a landscape scale (not just a field amongst a sea of arable crops) and have the potential to be home to mosaic of habitats and an array of species. In terms of addressing wildlife and conservation on a golf course, there are two key issues that come into play:
What is golf course management?
Golf Course management for wildlife. Many habitats of high value to wildlife need some form of management to maintain that value. Most types of grassland, for example, will not remain as grassland unless they are grazed, mown and/or disturbed in some way. In fact, many of the grassland communities that are considered of high value ...
What are the issues that affect golf courses?
In terms of addressing wildlife and conservation on a golf course, there are two key issues that come into play: • Protected habitats and species - these may be found on a golf course and could have legal implications for management and development.
What is SSSI golf?
SSSI status affords a site protection from development, and a requirement for management to maintain the habitats and species found. In England, around one hundred golf courses have all or part of the course designated as SSSI, and in Scotland around thirty courses have the same designation.
What is the Wildlife and Countryside Act?
The Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981 (WCA), represents the major legal instrument for wildlife protection in Britain. It has been amended several times and other legislation has been passed since its first inception, which has added further legal weight to wildlife legislation.
How many species are there in the golf course?
There are 1150 species and 65 habitats to strengthen this initiative. All of these species and habitats are now taken into consideration within the planning process. Undoubtedly, many golf courses will be home to protected species such as birds, bats, newts, snakes, insects, mammals and plants.
How does building golf courses affect aquatic life?
Building golf courses also destroys habitat and muddies streams to the detriment of aquatic life . Back in 2006 the owner of Florida’s Wildflower Golf Club, an 18- hole course between Sarasota and Fort Myers, had been preparing to sell the unprofitable private course to a devel- oper. Then the Lemon Bay Conservancy stepped in.
How many tons of chemicals are used on golf courses?
A study published in 2006 in the journal Sport in Society reported that although the amount of chemicals sprayed on courses varies, an average of 1.5 tons of agrochemicals—some of them known carcinogens—is used on golf courses every year.
Why did algal blooms appear earlier than usual?
Last year algal blooms arrived earlier than usual because of a warm spring and an abundance of phosphorus and nitrogen. When the site was a golf course manag- ers pumped about 15 million gallons of water a year on the property to keep the grasses lush, and applied six tons of fertilizer.
How did the Great Recession affect conservation?
By lowering land prices and decreasing disposable income, the Great Recession created a windfall for conservationists seeking to bring nature back to urban and suburban areas. At least half a dozen courses across the country are being converted to nature preserves or parks. From New Orleans, Louisiana, to Portland, Oregon, ...
Where is Squires Golf Course in Michigan?
The only trace of the Squires Golf Course at Forest Beach Migratory Preserve on Lake Michigan is the large clubhouse a few yards from the road. Where closely cropped greens and sand traps once dotted rolling hills, long grasses and stands of saplings now thrive.
Where do wolves migrate to in the summer?
In the summer they’ll migrate to the Arctic to mate and breed, returning to the preserve with their young in the fall. The property is even winning some surprising converts. Bruce Bloemer, who owned the course for nearly 16 years and says things like “golf is in my blood,” stops by, too. “I’ll tell you what,” he says.
Do golf courses need pesticides?
As a result, fewer courses can afford to stay open. Reimagining golf courses pays off well beyond a park’s boundaries. Maintaining fairways and greens typically requires heavy applications of pesticides and fertilizers—which can run off and pollute local waterways—not to mention enormous quantities of water.
