Farmers help forge stronger protection for under-threat bird

Farmers have been thanked for giving their support to the first year of a project designed to help an under-threat bird.

Clwydian Range and Dee valley National Landscapes is taking part in the project “Curlew Connections Wales”, a Curlew Recovery Wales partnership project working with Bannau Brycheiniog and GWCT.

This is under the all-Wales partnership project Gylfinir Cymru, an all-Wales partnership project that aims to help breeding Curlew across the country, including Denbighshire.

Curlews are under severe threat and are ‘Red Listed’ on both the Welsh and UK Birds of Conservation Concern (BoCC). Over 80 percent of the breeding population has been lost across Wales since the 1990’s.

This decline is due to a number of reasons including habitat loss, pressures during nesting season and the impact of predation on the birds.

Collaborative work is happening across the Clwydian Range and Dee valley National Landscapes area to protect the birds which is funded by Welsh Government through the Heritage Lottery fund (HLF). These areas include large parts of Denbighshire, as well as parts of Flintshire and Wrexham.

Local Curlew and People Officer Sam Kenyon has led on the project and has praised the support of all farmers involved during the project’s inaugural breeding season.

Approximately 30 curlew pairs were located and electric fences were put up around a few nests to protect the birds and eggs from predation.

The efforts of all farmers involved to collaborate in giving the rare animal a chance has been ‘heartwarming and made all the difference’ according to Sam.

She said:

“It’s been really inspirational to see neighbouring farms join together to give support to the nests and these iconic birds situated on their land.

Several took a single field approach towards protecting these vital nests and to support the project overall which is a real commitment I completely value. Some of our farmers agreed to delays in cutting forage in their fields as they protected the birds, meaning they’ve been late in accessing quality feed for livestock.

Through the project we have been able to give back in recognition of their valuable support with payments to compensate for these delays in the access to nutrients, done through the Welsh Government funding we have. But what really stands out is how committed our farmers have been to wanting to safeguard this rare bird on the land.”

Sam added:

“Without their support, knowledge and observations, we could not have found the nests to protect and limit the impact of predation on eggs.

It’s been really good to work with other farmers, supporting us to put together a team effort in helping to protect one of Wales most historical birds.”

Councillor Barry Mellor, Lead Member for Environment and Transport and Biodiversity Champion, said:

“This is an important project for a bird that was once a popular sight not just in Denbighshire and North Wales but across the whole of the UK. We are grateful that this project and funding allows the Clwydian Range and Dee valley National Landscapes to really move forward with protecting the curlews we have and encouraging the populations to survive and hopefully thrive in the future.

We are also extremely grateful for the immense support provided by the farming community towards this project alongside the small team of volunteers who have worked with the lead officer to monitor this important animal. Farmers on the project have given this under-threat bird a vital chance this season and we look forward to next season.”