Scottish Bean goose population given helping hand by Forestry Commission Scotland

Landscape partners work together in conservation effort

May 2013. Scotland's only population of a rare arctic goose will be better protected in future thanks to the purchase of a site in North Lanarkshire by Forestry Commission Scotland.

The Commission has bought a 90ha area of land that lies between its 176ha site at Fannyside Muir, near Cumbernauld, and the nearby Fannyside Loch.

The newly acquired site - which includes a substantial area of deep peat bog - forms part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Special Protection Area designated by Scottish Ministers under the EU Birds Directive. The site is the regular over-wintering ground of Scotland's only flock of taiga bean geese which numbers over 200 birds and represents more than half of the UK wintering population.

Paul Wheelhouse, Minister for the Environment & Climate Change said: "Deep peat bogs are vitally important habitats and also play an important role as carbon sinks, locking up large quantities of carbon dioxide (CO2) that would, if released, contribute to climate change.

200 Bean geese

"The wider area is also very important for over 200 Bean Geese that fly here every autumn to escape the worst of the Scandinavian winter. Forestry Commission Scotland can now incorporate this important site and the deep peat bog it contains into their management plan and can also work with the other landscape partners in the area - SNH, SWT and RSPB Scotland - to make sure that the mosaic of habitats is protected and improved for these birds and for other animal, plant and insect species in the area."

Maintain as peat bog

There are no plans to plant trees on the site - or to extract peat - which means that approximately 25,000t carbon (equivalent to >90,000tCo2) will remain locked up in the deep peat soils present on the site.

Bean geese in UK

Bean Geese are a species of European Conservation Concern. They breed in north Scandinavia, north Russia and north Asia but overwinter at this north Lanarkshire site and one other site in Britain. Bean Geese are an RSPB Amber conservation priority.

Continued

Grizedale's Red kites thriving - Have you seen any?

More than 200 sightings of Grizedale Forest's red kites recorded but public's help more important than ever

February 2013. Red kites released in the Forestry Commission's Grizedale Forest appear to be thriving following more than 200 sightings of the birds in England and Scotland - however help from the public is becoming more crucial than ever.

Photo courtesy of Forestry Commission

Wildlife officers from the Forestry Commission released 90 red kites as part of a three-year reintroduction programme to return the species to North West England - with the final release of 30 birds taking place last summer.

Mull to Hastings
Grizedale's red kites have been spotted as far north as the Isle of Mull, and as far south as Hastings. Many sightings have been made in Dumfries and Galloway, North Yorkshire and throughout Cumbria, particularly around Broughton-in-Furness and Kirkby Moor. It is hoped the birds will return to Grizedale Forest to breed and establish a sustainable population.

Orange tags
The birds carry an orange tag on their left wings to show they are from Grizedale, and one on the right to indicate the year of release - blue for 2010, white for 2011 and red for 2012. A selection also carried radio transmitters to allow officers to monitor their progress. However, some of the transmitters attached to birds released in 2010 are reaching the end of their battery-life so it is becoming increasingly important to record kites through visual sightings.

Read more:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/grizedale-kites.html