Wildlife Boxes

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Collaborative groups of farmers and land managers in the Surrey Hills have partaken in a collaborative project to support and enrich the natural habitat for wildlife. They have introduced activities such as planting hedgerows, installing wildlife houses and equipment funded through the FiPL (Funding in Protected Landscapes) project.

The collaborative bids, have resulted in;

  • 6.2km of new hedgerows with hedgerow trees being planted
  • Over 280 new nest boxes/homes for species including barn owls, little owls, tawny owls, tits, bats, dormice, kingfishers, swifts, robins, house martins, kestrels and treecreepers. A range of kit will also be installed to identify the presence of dormice, deer and badgers.
  • 12 wildlife cameras to track animal activity in particular areas
  • 4 deer exclosure areas to monitor the impact of deer on a particular landholding
  • Dormice footprint tunnels to investigate the presence of dormice across five sites

Below you can see some of the feedback so far from the wildlife cameras and we look forward to seeing how the wildlife houses get on in the future.

This project is helping deliver the Surrey Hills Management Plan by sustainably managing and conserving habitats and the natural environment and enriching the access and enjoyment of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty for all.

Project summary – phase 1

Applicant 20 different landowners
FiPL grant awarded £15,592.63
Total project cost £15,592.63
Project start date 17 December 2021
Project end date 21 March 2022

Wildlife boxes phase 2- 2022/2023.

This project aims to install a range of wildlife boxes for barn owls (6), kingfishers (2), swifts (14) and house martins (5). Dormice footprint tunnels (40) will also be installed in sites without confirmed dormice presence.

This project also runs symbiotically with the hedgerow funding as it enables habitats to be linked, working with the FF as a collaboration and on a larger scale enables the project to have a bigger impact, compared to individual landholdings implementing similar wildlife boxes.

Project summary – phase 2

Applicant Rob Fairbanks
FiPL grant awarded £1873.50
Total project cost £2000.72
Project start date October 2022
Project end date March 2023
Location Across the Surrey Hills