Upper Clun Community Wildlife Group Report 2017 Upper Clun Community Wildlife Group Report 2017 Contents INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 1 Aims & objectives ................................................................................................................... 1 Area & membership ................................................................................................................ 1 Management committee ......................................................................................................... 1 Publicity .................................................................................................................................. 1 Website ................................................................................................................................... 2 Co-operation with farmers, landowners & other organisations .......................................... 2 Activities & surveys ............................................................................................................... 2 Covering other types of wildlife ............................................................................................ 3 Funding ................................................................................................................................... 3 Constitution ............................................................................................................................ 3 Other community wildlife groups .......................................................................................... 3 THE BIRD GROUP ........................................................................................................................ 4 Bird Surveys Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 4 Participation and Coverage ............................................................................................................. 4 Lapwings ................................................................................................................................. 4 Fieldwork Results ............................................................................................................................. 4 Local Extinction? .............................................................................................................................. 5 Curlews .................................................................................................................................... 5 Fieldwork Results ............................................................................................................................. 5 Habitat Requirements and Population Decline .............................................................................. 7 Discussion ......................................................................................................................................... 7 Snipe ....................................................................................................................................... 8 Birds of the “wetlands” .......................................................................................................... 8 Survey Findings ................................................................................................................................ 9 Red kite ................................................................................................................................... 9 Other species ........................................................................................................................ 10 Dippers .................................................................................................................................. 10 2017 monitoring results ..................................................................................................................... 10 Nest boxes for woodland birds ........................................................................................... 11 Barn owls .............................................................................................................................. 11 Overview ............................................................................................................................... 12 THE PLANT GROUP ................................................................................................................... 13 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 13 Survey methodology ............................................................................................................ 13 Results and findings .......................................................................................................................... 13 Discussion ........................................................................................................................................... 14 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................... 15 Further work ......................................................................................................................... 15 THE BUTTERFLY GROUP .......................................................................................................... 15 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 16 Safeguarding habitat ............................................................................................................ 16 Future plans .......................................................................................................................... 16 MAMMALS .................................................................................................................................. 17 CO-OPERATION WITH FARMERS ............................................................................................. 17 CONSERVATION ACTION .......................................................................................................... 17 Local (county) wildlife sites ................................................................................................. 17 New HLSs agreements ......................................................................................................... 17 Countryside Stewardship..................................................................................................... 19 Future agri-environment schemes ..................................................................................... 19 Habitat requirements for target species ............................................................................. 20 Habitat management leaflets ............................................................................................... 20 Surveying wildlife sites ........................................................................................................ 20 River catchment management ............................................................................................. 20 Shropshire Hills AONB Management Plan .......................................................................... 21 Conservation action ............................................................................................................. 21 Curlew Action Plan ............................................................................................................... 21 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & DISTRIBUTION ............................................................................... 23 Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. 23 References ............................................................................................................................ 24 Distribution ........................................................................................................................... 25 The report .............................................................................................................................. 26 APPENDICES .............................................................................................................................. 28 Appendix 1. Bird Survey Recording Instructions 2017 ........................................................ 29 Appendix 2: Bird Survey Results ....................................................................................... 29 i) Curlew and Lapwing .................................................................................................... 29 ii) Other Target Bird Species, and Wetland Surveys .................................................... 29 iii) Curlew, Reed Bunting, & Other Target Species: Explanatory Note to the Maps ... 29 Appendix 3 Plant Group – Sites Surveyed 2017 ................................................................ 32 Appendix 4: Target Plant Indicator Species in the Upper Clun (The "Axiophytes") ....... 33 Appendix 5: Small Pearl bordered Fritillary Butterfly Surveys 2017 ................................ 34 Annexe 1. The Management Committee ......................................................................