Fringe Box

Socialize

Twitter

Millennials Needed To Help Maintain Lifeline For Bees, Bugs and Butterflies

Published on: 8 Jan, 2020
Updated on: 8 Jan, 2020

An ambitious new project by Surrey Wildlife Trust (SWT) to inspire young people to connect with nature has received a £390,000 boost from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Hibernating dormouse. More than 130 key species that depend on hedgerows are now at risk of extinction. Picture by Danny Green.

By reconnecting people with the local landscape, SWT hopes to prevent traditional hedge-laying skills and wildlife from becoming extinct in the county by creating vital habitat for hedgehogs, bees, bugs and butterflies.

The project aims to inspire young budding ecologists, practical conservationists and the wider local community by working with schools, colleges and youth groups.

Events such as a hedgerow festival, hedgerow tales storytelling workshops and hedge-laying competitions will help SWT reach its goal of engaging and inspiring thousands of younger people in the project over four years.

The innovative Preserving Surrey’s Hedgerow Heritage project begins this year with a total budget of nearly £880,00,  made possible in part by National Lottery players, corporate sponsors Chessington World of Adventures Resort (the Chessington Foundation Fund), Cargill and private individual appeal donors.

Working in partnership with other landowners and organisations across the North Downs, SWT says the project provides “a lifeline from our agricultural history for wildlife and future generations. It will also leave a legacy of creating, restoring and protecting more than 70 kilometres of hedgerows in the North Downs and Surrey Hills to create a more resilient and wildlife-rich natural environment for the future”.

Volunteers from Surrey Wildlife Trust have been carrying out surveys of Surrey hedges. The hedge survey map can be found on the SWT website.

SWT adds: “For hundreds of years, generations of hedge-layers have maintained the iconic patchwork quilt landscape to mark ownership boundaries, contain livestock and shelter crops from extreme weather.

“In the past these healthy and well-connected networks of hedgerows have been essential habitat, providing a source of food, shelter and safe passage for priority species of plants and animals.

“Today, a third of all wildlife in the county is already extinct or heading towards extinction. Since 1945, the intensification of farming and the trend towards larger fields has meant that half of hedgerows have disappeared from the landscape. In addition, 93% of the county’s remaining hedgerows are now in poor condition.

“More than 130 key species that depend on hedgerows are now at risk of extinction. These include dormice, hedgehogs, bats, butterflies such as the brown hair streak and rare pearl bordered fritillary, bees, bugs and birds such as the white throat and yellow hammer.”

Sarah Jane Chimbwandira, chief executive at Surrey Wildlife Trust, said: “Hedge-laying skills need to become mainstream if we are to help nature’s recovery and future-proof our environment.

“To protect our valuable wildlife and create jobs for our future, younger people need to learn nature conservation skills. Through our project we hope to give people the opportunity to develop skills and careers in the environment and also improve the health and well-being of young people by reconnecting them with nature.”

Increasingly, hedgerows are valued for the major role they play in mitigating climate change by preventing soil loss from fields and reducing wind erosion and flooding by acting as a barrier. They also help to reduce pollution from fertilisers and pesticides, regulating water supply and reducing run-off providing vital ecosystem services.

The project aims to engage and inspire 2,400 people, with a focus of more than half being young people from school and youth groups, as well as community volunteers, landowners, farm managers, corporate volunteer teams, public and private sector contractors in the restoration of hedgerows.

Based on a press release from Surrey Wildlife Trust.

Share This Post

Leave a Comment

Please see our comments policy. All comments are moderated and may take time to appear.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *