Tag: grey squirrel

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Pine marten roundup

For any readers who do not know what a pine marten is, the above will give you an idea. It is an arboreal predator (that is, it hunts in the trees). There are a total of 8 species of marten across the world. Historically, this was the second most common predator in the UK, with only the fox being more common.

Unfortunately, its habit of taking chickens lead to it being hunted ruthlessly. At the current time, it hangs on in Wales, and has a significant population in Scotland. In Ireland, the recovery is far further along.

In the UK, one of the reasons that we miss this little predator, is its impact on grey squirrels. Unlike the pine marten, the grey squirrel is not native to the UK, and its presence does much damage, from its impact on trees, and other plants, to the fact that it carries a disease which wipes out the reds rapidly (so they are incapable of living alongside each other). This is a species which I have followed closely, and while other matters have stopped me blogging on this species as often as I would like, it has not stopped me from reading about it, so you will find summaries of a variety of stories below.

 

 

Reintroduction project in Dartmoor: 15 pine martens were released in secret locations within Dartmoor in September. A total of 7 conservation organisations have been involved in this translocation. It is a total of around 150 years since pine martens were last in the area, but the translocated individuals are settling and slowly dispersing across the landscape.

To the right you will find a tiktok video which will give you details on this reintroduction.

@woodland_trust Pine martens are back in Dartmoor! 🎉    This conservation success story is the work of The Two Moors Pine Marten Project which we’re a partner of. 🌳    Site manager David Rickwood explains more. 📽    Learn more at 👉 twomoorspinemartens.org  @National Lottery Heritage Fund   #woodlandtrust #wildlife #britishwildlife #wildlifetok #pinemartens #dartmoor #conservation ♬ original sound - Woodland Trust

While there is no idea where the pine martens came from, they appear to be doing well, and as the video shows, are breeding. While they have not been there long, so there is little evidence yet, it is highly likely that the pine marten arrival will be bad for local grey squirrel populations (a non-native squirrel which does much damage to UK woodland). This is an area of excitment and should be followed closely.

Pine marten spotted on Longleat estate

Pine marten caught on camera trap in Longleat estate in Wiltshire. It is unclear where this individual came from, lying half way between the forest of dean and the new forest (but far from both), but it is thought it has arrived naturally. While red squirrels would not be able to reappear in this part of the country, without help, as all surrounding areas have grey squirrels, should the pine marten survive, it is likley to greatly impact the local popualtion, and create an island, into which red squirrels could eventually return.

Pine marten in the forest of dean

Pine marten were translocated from Scotland into the forest of dean, beginning in autumn of 2019, when 19 were introduced, and a further 35 joined them in the next 2 years. Last summer, there was an estimate of 60 living in the forest, which while not a big increase, it has not fallen.

While the forest of dean covers just over 200 square miles, it is thought that 60 is roughly the carrying capacity. That suggests that the pine martens in the forest of dean need roughly twice as much space as elsewhere, so time will tell if the population can grow beyond this level. Still, it seems likely that this number of pine martens should be able to eradicate the grey squirrel, or at least greatly reduce its number in the area.

The below video shows 3 cubs from around 4 years ago.

 

Pine marten in the forest of dean

Research is being done on whether pine martens can live in timber forests – which account for a lot of forest in Scotland

Some simple changes may well allow timber and pine martens to flourish alongside each other. Across 1 woodland, a number of nest boxes have been added, which appears to be helping. The plantations are also looking at letting some older trees stay standing, as these are where cavities appear, which is the pine martens natural home. This research is being carried out in the forest of Ae and around Castle O’er.

Pine martens have turned up in a London cemetery, in area of England where they have not been seen for 150 years 

The Zoological Society of London ZSL (London Zoo)  already had a project in the area with remote cameras, as it is a stronghold for the hedgehog (unfortunately, another species with a horrific decline in the last 20-30 years). It was just one (and this was in 2022, so may well be gone), but it is exciting that such a small area can house an animal like this.

The Forest of dean, is 80 miles away, which is the nearest population, so it is thought that this might have to be the result of an illegal translocation (they are being translocated, but should be done by professionals, with checks and more.

Pine marten recovery is further along, and helps understand how it will work in England, particularly in cities (not the safe zone once thought)

 Once almost extinct, for similar reasons in the UK (habitat destruction, and persecution) in 1976 they were given legal protection, and at the same time, forestry started to expand once again. The pine marten is how living in around 45% of Ireland.

The red squirrel is recovering as a result. There was a fear that grey squirrels would survive within cities, as pine martens are generally to shy to venture into even large parks within cities. However, what has been found, is that the abundance of squirrels in cities is a mirage – there are only sustained by populations outside the city, therefore, should places like the green belt around London get settled by pine martens, it is likely that the London squirrels would disappear within a few years.

Similar to elsewhere, pine martens have now also been introduced to the Lake district.

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Could the recovery of the Goshawk save the red squirrel?

European Goshawks were extinct in Britain at the end of the 19th century (and remained rare for over half a century) but in the last 50 years have made an incredible comeback. In the new forest, in the south of England, there are thought to be hundreds of pairs living wild.

In Thetford forest in Norfolk, an estimated 52% of the goshawks diet was grey squirrel. While it is true that they will also take red squirrels, these are generally better at escaping. More importantly, it is thought that Goshawks could be used to stop the grey squirrels population from growing any further.

As I have written before, the pine marten is also important for the recovery of the red squirrel, as it is far more successful at hunting grey squirrels, and they generally do not cohabit in any part of the country.

This will likely not eliminate the direct need for grey squirrel population to be culled by humans, far from it, but may well help towards the idea of giving red squirrels breathing room.

Continue reading “Could the recovery of the Goshawk save the red squirrel?”
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As water buffalo return, they are revitalizing the kizilirmak delta – formerlly destroyed by becoming industrial wastelands

There are many species around the world which are so important to their habitat, that even a reduction in the population can cause problems – this is one of them. After tadpoles have lost their tails, many will climb onto the hairy back of the water buffalo, getting a ride to other rich feeding areas (and the buffalo gets any irritating flies eaten). There can be as many as 20 frogs on each water buffalo.

Water buffalo were first domesticated 3000 years ago, in Asia, but have proved to be so useful, there are now 200 million spread across 77 countries, on 5 continents. Initially considered as useful animals for plough and similar farm work, in recent times, it has been recognized for its ecosystem engineer duties.

Thriving in wetlands, they can force their way through places that other herbivores fail. While they are not native to many of their current homes, they are capable of filling ecological niches that have long been empty after the initial large cattle like animals were killed off, or all taken into captivity. It should be noted, that in some places, like Australia, there are few to no predators, to control such a large animal, which has lead to a population of 200,000. There is a native water buffalo (Anatolian).

A variety of characteristics help this species to easily fill the ecological niche of the European water buffalo (lost around 10,000 years ago). From transporting seeds in their fur, they fill in many of the roles that the extinct European water buffalo did in the long past. Even in places like the UK, which is one of the most nature depleted countries, the water buffalo are replacing long extinct species, and recovering ecosystems as a result.

This sort of behaviour has to be carefully managed, as in many places, introducing a closely related species can be very costly. In the UK, the grey squirrel has decimated the population of the native red squirrel, and this is not an isolated example, with many others from around the world. However, so long as their effect is closely managed, and there is not a closer relation to the missing species, the impact is likely to be a net positive. Over the last 50 years, 1/3 of the worlds wetlands have been lost, these species, when carefully managed, are likely to be able to bring some of this back.

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Should pest animals be put on the ‘pill’ rather than culling them?

One of the most noticeably colourful invasive species is the parakeet

Increasingly, scientists are coming up with simple ways to avoid wildlife pregnancies through medication in food. In the UK species needing this sort of thing include

These vary in the cost to the UK economy (as do the various invasive species elsewhere in the world). Below, you will find a list of many of these species in the UK, along with (where available) an estimate of the size of the population and the cost that they come with from the damage that they do. Click read more, to look at all of the different species we have talked about.

Read more: Should pest animals be put on the ‘pill’ rather than culling them?
  • Grey squirrels: Squirrels are estimated to cost £7 million in England and Wales just to forestry, the total is estimated at £14 million. The royal forestry society stated “Grey squirrel damage to trees in England and. Wales is estimated to cost £37m a year in lost timber value, reduced carbon capture, damage”. Likely a more complete figure. While the only successful elimination campaign was on Anglesey (9,597 grey squirrels were killed at a cost of £1,019,000) using natural forces, such as pine martens, many areas would just need time. They are found throughout mainland UK and many islands except areas like Anglesey and various islands, as well as areas where pine martens still live – their range includes much of Scotland and parts of Wales. Allowing the Pine marten to recover would greatly increase the number of no grey squirrels area – and various tests have shown that isolating populations can quickly depress them to near zero (despite being one of the most common places to see squirrels, city populations are only sustained by continual immigrants from the surrounding area. There are thought to be around 2.7 million grey squirrels.
  • wild boar: different to the Grey squirrel, the wild boar is native. It is true that most boar is not pure, and as such with the pig DNA breeds far faster, making its control harder. The countries population is thought to currently be 2600. Their presence of wild boar greatly improves the health of woodland, so we hope that they will not be exterminated, but rather allowed to spread to other woodlands (or indeed moved). It can be an issue for farmers, and there are needs to work on this, but their net effect is likely to be positive.
  • deer (both over-large native populations & introduced species). It is thought to be around 2 million deer in the UK, with around 600,000 born each year.
    • Red deer- 360,000 in UK, with most being in Scotland. Perhaps only 50 in Wales This has grown hugely over the last 100 years. Growth estimates 2.23% growth a year. NATIVE
    • Roe deer- 800,000 in UK, with around 70% in Scotland. Perhaps only 50 in Wales. Estimate is that the population is growing at around 2.3% a year NATIVE
    • Sika deer- 11,500, 9000 in Scotland and 2500 in England. They originated in Eastern Asia and were introduced in around 1860. NON-NATIVE- founding population originates from escapees from various deer parks around the UK (though I think it is easy to argue that deer parks should only contain native deer, in the UK
    • Fallow deer: around 100,000, thought to have hugely increased in last 20 years but increase per year is not forthcoming. NON-NATIVE -They originate in Asia, attempts to introduce them into places like Spain have often failed due to surviving populations of predators like wolves.
    • Muntjac deer: NON-NATIVE – Introduced to Woburn Park in Bedfordshire in 1838, they started to escape shortly after. Current population is roughly 52,000, but with a growth rate, that has been measured between 1980-2009 at 12% per annum. Should this continue, it would only take 2 decades for the population to exceed 500,000
    • Chinese water deer: NON-NATIVE – there are just 3600 deer living in the UK, though this is thought to be growing each year. Alarmingly, this small number represents 10% of the global population. It is possible that these might represent a back-stop which could allow their reintroduction back into their native habitat. The population is thought to be growing.
  • Feral goats: thought to be the first animal farmed, as early as 5000BC, but it is thought to have been roaming the UK for around 10,000 years. The Snowdonia goat population is thought to have doubled to 500 in the last 5 years. Originally thought to be around 250 herds around the country, that has dropped to just 50. The current population is thought to be around 1500
  • Pigeons- Descended from native, via domestication: The wild animal is the Rock dove, the feral pigeon is a domesticated species which escaped. The feral pigeon is thought to be around 18 million. No serious effort has been made to eliminate them, though problem populations can be rapidly reduced by bird boxes for birds of prey like peregrine falcons.
  • Parakeets NON-NATIVE 32,000 in 2012 potentially twice that number by now. Various possible starts to the population include escapees from a film set of ‘The African Queen’ an aviary damaged by falling parts of a plane. However, once here their population rapidly grown. They have a very strong beak, which means that they are often able to create access points into buildings from incredibly small openings. Once inside they can cause electrical short circuits and more.
  • Wallabies: unknown population size, the peak district population is thought to be extinct, having not been seen in the wild since 2000.
  • Many, many more

Total damage from invasive animals, in the UK, is estimated at £5 billion over the last 40-50 years.

The problem of invasive species appears to be a problem around the world. Places like the Kruger national park in South Africa, while looking native, have 146 species alien species, and what will happen in the future.

The suggestion is, by stopping these species from being able to have young the population will disappear over time. Virtually every country on earth has invasive species, but we need to work on stopping these accidental or illegal introductions. There would have to be a range of different ways of to get the contraceptives into the animal, food which a red deer could consume would not be edible for a parakeet.

Oddly, one of the groups most at fault here, is so called animal rights groups. Regardless of where the species origin is, they are just set loose. This is foolish, as both the released animals, and the area into which they are released are likely to suffer horrifically – often through starvation, though the animal will often do much damage before they die. So called animal rights groups are foolish in the extreme if they think that this improves the life of any of the animals in question.

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The future of the Pine marten in the UK

Before humans started cutting down the forests of the UK, the pine marten was likely one of the most common carnivores in the UK. This voracious arboreal hunter is the reason that our resident squirrel is so acrobatic – these skills would likely be tested every day.

Indeed, pine martens are less widely spread in the USA which is likely one of the reasons that grey squirrels are so incapable of surviving alongside pine martens. Thus, in the UK we have this perverse situation within the UK, where the only refuge of the red squirrel (apart from small islands which can be cleared more easily) are areas of the country where pine martens also survive on.

Is the day coming where a walking

In the UK, it has been long known that pine martens survive in Scotland. Protection of their forests must improve if we are to hold onto them for longer.

Continue reading “The future of the Pine marten in the UK”
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Wrong assumption about red squirrel once again?

For years it has been assumed that it is a mixture of these two reasons that red squirrels survive but perhaps not

Food sources in conifer plantations tend to be smaller, limited to small cones and such like. As such, this suited the smaller red squirrel more than the invasive grey. However this has recently been thrown into doubt.

Where as, in broadleaf tree plantations there are a variety of food sources for pine martens and so red squirrels will not be exclusively predated, in conifer forests with less food to find red squirrels are hunted more often.

This research is based on 5 years of observations from the public and camera traps. It was carried out in northern Ireland, and looked at pine martens red and grey squirrels.

In natural woodlands there is a diverse range of prey and plenty of refuges for red squirrels, however in conifer plantations pine martens will eat far more squirrels because there is little else for it to find.

We therefore need to stop replacing large areas of natural wood with plantations.

If this is true, then the pine marten has even more pressure on it, as it must drive the grey squirrel out so reds can survive. A recent study of grey squirrels dna shows that the UK population relies far more on humans. Far from colonising the country they appear to have been moved by humans and installed in new parts of the country on many occasion. One example, showed this by the fact that the grey squirrels around Aberdeen appear to have originated with the population around the new forest.

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Pine martens released near Bangor, Wales

Despite the fact that British citizens have done much good work towards to conservation of wildlife and wilderness in the world, we have been less successful in the UK. Having largely eradicated a small arboreal predator from much of the UK, we then decided to introduce the grey squirrel from the USA.

Bangor pine marten – 4 were reintroduced a year ago, and seem to be doing well

Spending more time on the ground, and being far less agile than their red smaller cousins, grey squirrels cannot coexist with pine martens.

Continue reading “Pine martens released near Bangor, Wales”

Forest of Dean

Forest of Dean - Boar Watching

The Forest of Dean is perhaps one of the biggest and healthiest woodlands within the UK.

Part of this is down to its significant population of wild boar.

Before humans hunted wild boar to extinction, they were a highly important part of our ecosystem, and generally woodlands in the UK show their absence.

What do I mean? One of the benefits of wild boar is that their rooting behavior. While humans often do not like this, as this rooting behavior can destroy gardens or picturesque roundabouts,  areas that have had this treatment are perfect for trees to germinate and start to grow.

Indeed we were astounded walking around the forest to see so many small copses of new tree nurseries. In this sense wild boar fulfill a similar niche of being ecosystem engineers as beavers in rivers.

Apart from the boar, there is a healthy population of deer. Roe deer exist here naturally. Fallow deer were introduced by the Normans and this is the most common species to see. In recent years Muntjac deer have also recently become established and are fascinating. There are a small number of red deer that still exist though seeing these is a lucky day.

Adult rooting with boarlets (or as some call them Humbugs)
One of the big advantages of boar presence is a reduction of ground cover

Wild boar are surprisingly large animals and we have had a couple of encounters with them on our visits.

The best way to spot them is by driving some of the back roads in the early evening.

I have once spotted a family from the car, and this year two boar ran past while we were walking a forest path.

Both were in a similar location. I will put together a page of information that will be sent with any booking made from the accommodation further down the page, or I can provide just this information for £10 if you have found a place to stay elsewhere.

View of the forest
River Wye running through
Boar track among dog tracks
Dung beetle at work
Droppings - Pine marten?
More rooting behavior signs

The Forest of Dean is a truly wild woodland. While it is scattered with villages and towns, this is the only place I have seen beetles actually behaving as dung beetles, in the UK.

The government has also started a process of translocating pine martens to the area, and while the animal is shy, signs of its presence will increase over the next few years. If the translocation is successful, then it will also slowly remove the grey squirrels from this wood, which apart from being good for the health of the trees, will allow red squirrels to recolonize.

Visiting a place like this allows you to hunt for signs of the animals such as tracks, as well as spotting the actual animal itself.

Boar are highly intelligent, and fascinating to see. Care should be taken as they can be dangerous, particularly when they have young.

Places to stay

Below is a variety of lodgings which are close to wild parts of the forest. There is also a link to search all accommodation available within the forest of dean. Any bookings support the work of the site. The places we have listed are close to where we have had our sightings, however boar are found throughout the forest so do not feel restricted to just the places we listed.

Campsites will be listed below the hotels.

Link to search all available lodgings listed on booking.com throughout the Forest of Dean
Inglewood House Monmouth, prices from £90
Demense Farm Guesthouse, monmouth, prices from £122
Raglan Lodge, Monmouth, prices from £40
[booking_product_helper shortname=”forest of dean”]
Forest Walk Coleford, prices from £60
Lodge rooms, Coleford, prices from £80
Bell Hotel Coleford, Prices from £60
Angel Hotel Coleford, Prices from £99

Campsites coming soon

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