River Hull Headwaters - East Yorkshire Chalk Rivers Trust

Coordinator - Alan Mullinger

Sites      River Hull Headwaters (23)
Team     15
Activity   August 2006

www.eastyorkshirechalkriverstrust.org

The River Hull headwaters rise from the chalk wolds in East Yorkshire. This little known system of chalk streams are the most northerly example of chalk fed streams in Europe. The major tributary, West Beck, is designated a SSSI.

There are two isolated systems. One in the north of the area, Gipsey Race.This small stream flows eastward into the sea at Bridlington. The second system is Mires Beck. This stream flows southwards into the Humber. Sections of both these streams are also designated SSSI’s.

A Riverfly Monitoring Workshop was held in August 2007, supported by the Environment Agency and the East Yorkshire Chalk Rivers Trust.

The group was comprised of members from various angling interests, conservationists, Wild Trout Trust and a local agricultural college.  We also had interested parties from west Yorkshire who are intending to start their own monitoring group on the Colne and Calder.
 
The Bishop Burton College students undertaking a fisheries management course sample the Mires Beck on a monthly basis as part of their field studies. The college liaise with the Trust to undertake fishery improvement schemes in this small stream. The riverfly data will assist in measuring the effectiveness of the various projects they will undertake.

A site on the upper Foston Beck system corresponds with a habitat improvement scheme on this stream as it flows through an area of wet woodland. This site was submitted as a project for the Wild Trout Trust Awards.

The streams in the study area are Eastburn Beck, Elmswell Beck, West Beck, Foston Beck, Gipsey Race & Mires Beck. It is hoped to increase our monitoring area to include some of the lesser known tributaries of the Hull.

Due to heavy rainfall during the summer and dense weed growth some of the sites will not be accessible until early 2008.