Going red at Wallington
Tuesday 11th September 2012
© Katy Cook
Red Squirrels Northern England (RSNE) has been working with Wallington Hall in Northumberland to secure a five year grant from the Forestry Commission for the control of grey squirrels on the National Trust owned estate; the programme of work will be undertaken in a partnership with RSNE, local volunteers and National Trust staff.
To kick-start the programme, the RSNE team has been busy training Wallington Hall staff and volunteers about the various aspects of red conservation, and were very impressed with their enthusiasm to continue the monitoring of squirrel activity and their offer to undertake work on behalf of the RSNE ranger when he isn’t on site.
Red Squirrels Northern England
The partners in RSNE are Cumbria, Northumberland, Lancashire, Durham and North Yorkshire Wildlife Trusts, Forestry Commission, Natural England and the Red Squirrel Survival Trust. The project also works alongside the volunteer community (group members of the Northern Red Squirrel Network) and private landowners to achieve its objectives.
The crucial red squirrel conservation action this programme focuses on is grey squirrel control. Control of grey squirrels is essential if red squirrels are going to remain a feature of northern England’s natural environment. RSNE currently employs 12 Rangers and 6 contractors to undertake grey squirrel control in areas still important for red squirrels.
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