Brown hares and lapwings are disappearing from our countryside

You can help

A partnership of Gwent Wildlife Trust, the 5 Gwent local authorities, the RSPB and the Game Conservancy Trust are working together to find out more about two well known, but rapidly declining species, the lapwing and the brown hare. These species were once common on farmland in south east Wales, but the lapwing experienced a 77% decline between 1987 and 1998, a trend that is still continuing, while the brown hare has suffered an 80% decline since the 1950s.

Brown hare numbers dropped dramatically when farming methods became more intensive following the second world war. They prefer a mixture of arable fields and pasture with hedges and ditches in which to feed and shelter – countryside more closely associated with traditional methods of farming. Hares are much bigger than rabbits and have longer ears and golden eyes. March and April are good months to look for them because the males can be seen ‘boxing’ or ‘courting’ females.

Lapwings are found on a range of habitats including short grassland or spring-tilled arable land, but they always select open habitats that provide unbroken all-round views of approaching predators. Wet flushes, shallow ditches and small scrapes also benefit lapwing by providing additional sources of invertebrate food. The shift to intensive grassland systems has been the major cause of their decline.

Although both hares and lapwings prefer to nest in short grazed swards, stocking levels must be kept low to prevent disturbance and trampling of young leverets and chicks.

To ensure that the farming community can take part in the survey hundreds of survey forms are being distributed across SE Wales via local NFU offices and other farming organisations. The partnership is keen for farmers, and as many members of the public as possible, to get involved in the survey by sending in sightings of these species. Steven Rogers, the Conservation Officer of Gwent Wildlife Trust says ‘This information will give us a better idea of current numbers and distribution and will help us make the right decisions to help these species recover.’

Deborah Beeson, the Biodiversity Officer at Blaenau Gwent Council, says “It is easy to take part in the survey and the more people who record their sightings the better the results will be”. “All you need do is fill in a copy of the survey form – available from the Gwent Wildlife Trust, or the Wildlife Trust’s and councils’ websites, and return it to the Freepost address shown.”

For further information please contact Steven Rogers Conservation Officer Gwent Wildlife Trust tel 01600 740358 or email srogers@gwentwildlife.cix.co.uk

Land management advice is available from:

Brown hare: The Game Conservancy Trust

Tel 01452 652381

Management leaflets: www.gct.org.uk/conservation guides

Lapwing: RSPB Farmland Projects Officer Wales

01248 363800

Management leaflets: www.rspb.org/operation lapwing

Lapwing

Photograph by P Watts

Brown Hare