by Playfuls Staff |
15th January 2007
Street drains appear to be providing a safe haven for threatened species of fern, according to a seven-year investigation by an amateur biologist in the city of Utrecht.
Wim [more] Vuik, who works for the Dutch foundation of floral research (Floristisch Ondersoek Nederland), told the daily Volkskrant he had found a wide variety of ferns since a surprise discovery in 1999 when he lifted a storm water drain cover.
"I stood above a drain ... and looked down purely coincidentally to see something green glistening down there. I bent down to take a looked and saw a fern," Vuik said.
He proceeded to lift drain covers all down the street, making similar discoveries. The chance find has led to a seven-year hobby.
"Every day I spend an hour after work," Vuik said. He has investigated 58,000 drains in the city, systematically charting his findings.
Vuik concludes the conditions are ideal being similar to the rocky environs that ferns favour. Their main enemy in their new home is the tree: leaves washed down the drains block the water flow and the sunlight they need to thrive.
There is evidence of a similar phenomenon in other Dutch cities, and Vuik believes that some species can be removed from lists of threatened plants.
© 2007 DPA
