Conservation in action – Winter 2024
Read our winter update on BASC conservation projects, including how you can get involved.
Habitat and predator management are of equal importance for curlew recovery
BASC demonstrated its commitment to curlew recovery as part of a Gylfinir Cymru (Curlew Wales) delegation that met with Huw Irranca-Davies, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs.
The meeting focused on progressing the Wales Curlew Recovery Action Plan and emphasised the necessity of habitat and predator management.
Gylfinir Cymru, of which BASC is a member, is vital because it advocates for key actions for curlew recovery, all of which have been discussed and agreed by 20 organisations. The organisations involved span the farming, nature conservation and game management sectors. Their consensus provides clarity to government on what actions to take.
The Deputy First Minister was briefed on the critical role of both habitat condition and predator control, highlighting the importance of targeted measures to support curlew populations. He invited the partnership to engage with the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) team to ensure the scheme effectively supports curlew recovery efforts.
Advocating for predator management
BASC, a key member of the Gylfinir Cymru partnership since its inception in 2019, has established itself as a trusted authority on curlew conservation. The partnership has briefed all climate and rural affairs ministers – a unique achievement for any species-focused group – with BASC representing shooting and conservation interests in each of those meetings.
The partnership continues to advocate for policies that recognise the importance of legal, humane, and effective predator control alongside habitat management as critical tools for nature recovery.
Ian Danby, BASC’s head of biodiversity, represented the Association at the meeting. He said: “As one of the delegates representing Gylfinir, I know we were all heartened by the Deputy First Minister’s knowledge and commitment to the Wales Curlew Recovery Action Plan. He was adamant that our expertise is brought into the development of the Sustainable Farming Scheme and understood that both habitat management and predator management are essential for curlew recovery. It is a formula that will support the recovery of more than 80 species, especially other lowland breeding wader species like lapwing. It will also increase water and carbon storage by improving soil health, plus enhance people’s wellbeing.
“A Sustainable Farming Scheme that follows this formula will lead to success for curlew, like we see on well managed grouse moors. The challenge is to replicate this on uplands where shooting isn’t the priority and to translate this success into lowland landscapes.”
These efforts could also set a precedent for similar approaches in England’s Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMs), which started to investigate predator management to support threatened species under the Sunak government. This now needs prioritising urgently and added to the ELMs scheme to support curlew recovery in England.
BASC’s ongoing engagement with the Welsh Government underscores its pivotal role in advocating for balanced, evidence-based conservation strategies that benefit wildlife and the broader environment.
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