Published:
14:06 Monday 08 October 2018
For the
first time in three years, corncrake numbers in the Outer Hebrides have shown
an increase.
RSPB
staff, who survey for corncrakes between midnight and 3am every suitable night
through the summer, believe that corncrakes had a very successful season, with
34 more male corncrakes calling on the Outer Hebrides this year compared to
last. Corncrakes have suffered massive declines throughout the UK in the past
fifty years, with the range contracting severely and the Hebridean islands are
one of the last strongholds of this fascinating species. The low impact
crofting that is the general rule on these islands, enables the species to keep
breeding well into August, with chicks being seen this year mid-way through
September.
While
this is unusual, it highlights the fact that a long breeding season is
essential for the survival of the species: late hay cutting dates, encouraged
by Agri-environmental schemes, have given this small bird a fighting chance for
the future. In other parts of the UK two or three cuts of silage crops are the
norm, corncrakes cannot survive within systems like these, so have been pushed
to the very edge of their range.
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