In the UK which type of habitat does great crested newts live in?

Answer 1

Great crested newts live in a wide range of mainly lowland
habitats, and are by no means restricted to 'natural'
environments. They are found primarily in artificially created
ponds and terrestrial habitats, or at least those that have been
greatly modified by human activities. The farmed landscape
provides the most extensive broad habitat type. They appear
able to colonise modified habitats relatively quickly if the
conditions are favourable and there is a colonising source in the
vicinity.
Natural and semi-natural aquatic habitats in which great
crested newts occur include marshes, reed beds, spring fed
ponds, pingos, bog pools, sand dune pools and ox-bow lakes. As
these habitats have become reduced through human activities,
overall they contribute less today to great crested newt survival
than newer, man-made habitats. However, as these settings
represent the "natural state" of the species they are of
conservation significance. Some semi-natural locations support
very large and regionally significant populations.
In some areas of high pond density, such as north-west England
and north Wales, populations are distributed across a dense
network of farm ponds within extensive metapopulations.
Populations in this situation are considerably more robust than
those where landscapes are fragmented by urbanisation or
industry, or where populations are centred on small numbers of
isolated breeding ponds. Here, metapopulation structure is
poorly developed, with great crested newt colonies being more
vulnerable to long-term declines and local extinctions.