Project focusing on rare species in orchards is 'incredibly important', says Worcestershire Wildlife Trust
Over half a million pounds has been given to support the three-year project across Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire aimed at helping wildlife in such settings
A three-year project looking at orchard wildlife across Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire has received a funding boost of over half a million pounds.
£590,121 has been awarded from Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme which will be carried out by the three counties Wildlife Trusts in partnership with Aberystwyth University and the People’s Trust for Endangered Species.
The work will focus on building knowledge and skills to identify and monitor the four species of noble chafers, red-horned cardinal click beetles, orchard toothcrust fungus and mistletoe marble moths, as well as supporting landowners to restore and create habitats for them.
Surveys of noble chafers will take place outside of the region in the New Forest and be carried out by colleagues at People’s Trust for Endangered Species, with this area being known as the UK’s only other stronghold for these rare beetles.
Head of conservation at Worcestershire Wildlife Trust, Steve Bloomfield, said: "By understanding better how these species respond to management, we can hope to benefit all of the species that live in those sorts of habitats.
"That's important not just for the individual animals and fungi we're talking about at the moment but for everything associated with veteran trees and orchards, because those habitats are rare at a national level and they are fundamental to nature's recovery.
"So if we're serious about nature conservation, if we're serious about the public benefits that nature conservation brings in terms of health and wellbeing, stable climate, working on individual species like this, however esoteric, is a foundational plank in doing great stuff for everything else as well."
The work is part of a larger focus which will see 364 threatened species looked at across at total of 130 projects that are receiving a share of £60 million of funding as part of the government’s Wild Again: Restoring England’s Wildlife initiative.