Farm animals keep vole army at bay

24 May 2006

Giving a mix of farm animals a controlled 'right to roam' will help to improve biodiversity and solve a vole conservation dilemma in upland Britain, according to new research published today in the Journal of Applied Ecology.

As numbers of hill farmers and grazing animals dwindle, field voles are thriving in undisturbed upland and forest areas. This is great news for protected birds of prey such as hen harriers that use voles as a source of food, but not so good for Britain's upland forests as the growing army of voles enjoy banqueting on young tree saplings.

The new research, carried out by a team of scientists from Scotland, considers the impact of re-introducing mixed farming of sheep and cattle, once common in the British landscape, should be reintroduced. This step, combined with some simple changes to forest management - such as allowing farm animals managed roaming rights within the landscape - would allow vole numbers to be controlled, helping to conserve and improve the mix of plants, trees and other wildlife.

Lead author, Dr Darren Evans from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, said "This is the first time that a scientific link has been shown between livestock grazing methods and vole numbers. Our work has revealed that a return to mixed farming with managed 'right to roam', provides a way of managing our upland areas to benefit conservationists, foresters and farmers."

Dr Evans explained "Voles are often seen as public enemy number one for young forests but, by forming a new partnership between forest managers and upland farmers, we can get the best mix of biodiversity and commercial tree planting, while conserving an important food source for the birds of prey."

Mixed farming where animals such as sheep, cows, horses and goats lived together on a single farm was a common sight in Britain until the 1950s, before agricultural reform changed the way much of the uplands were managed.

A new PhD student at the Macaulay Institute is taking the vole research further, and trying to answer some of the questions it has raised. The student is co-supervised by staff at the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and the University of Aberdeen.

Further information

For more information contact the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology Press office:

Barnaby Smith
Mob: 07832 160960 (preferred)
Tel: 01491 692439 (2 days a week)

Copies of the paper are available from:

Becky Allen
British Ecological Society Press Officer
Tel: 01223 570016
Mob: 07949 804317

Notes

1. The paper "To graze or not to graze? Sheep, voles, forestry and nature conservation in the British uplands" will be published in the Journal of Applied Ecology on 19th May 2006.

2. Dr Darren Evans undertook this work when based at the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology research site in Banchory, Scotland. The work was carried out as a collaborative project between the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, The Macaulay Institute, Scottish Agricultural College and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

3. The study was funded by the Scottish Executive as a part of the GRUB (Effects of grazing management on upland bird populations) project. The research was carried out at Glen Finglas with the kind permission of the Woodland Trust.

4. The Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) is the UK's leading research organisation for land and freshwater science. Its 500 scientists carry out research to improve our understanding of both the environment and the processes that underlie the Earth's support systems. It is one of the Natural Environment Research Council's research centres. CEH has 8 research sites within England, Scotland and Wales and an administrative headquarters based at Swindon.

5. NERC is one of the UK's research councils. It uses a budget of about £350m a year to fund and carry out impartial scientific research in the sciences of the environment. NERC trains the next generation of independent environmental scientists. It is addressing some of the key questions facing mankind such as global warming, renewable energy and sustainable economic development.

6. The Macaulay Institute is the premier land use research centre in the UK. 270 staff are based at the Macaulay Institute at Craigiebuckler in Aberdeen. The Macaulay Institute aims to be an international leader in research on the use of rural land resources for the benefit of people and the environment and is involved in research across the globe; from Scotland to Chile and China.

Press release: 31/06

Farm animals keep vole army at bay

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