4 minute read

The problem – in a nutshell

Or, perhaps an eggshell? Birds in Cornwall are declining – almost half of breeding birds. And it’s not just birds. According to the State of Nature Cornwall 2020 Report "Nature is in decline in Cornwall. Over the last 30 years, nearly half of terrestrial mammals and three-fifths of butterflies are found in fewer places... Whilst a few species have prospered, it is clear that an ecological emergency is unfolding."

That fits with the national picture. Almost 12 years ago an independent review of England’s wildlife sites, led by Professor Sir John Lawton, drew some chilling conclusions. Wildlife sites are too small. Too isolated. Climate change will only make this worse. "This is bad news for wildlife but also bad news for us," said Lawton. The wildlife sites we have just don’t cut it.

The problem in an eggshell? Nature just doesn’t have enough space.

The solution – bigger, better, more joined up

Lawton argued that we need to make spaces for nature bigger, better and more joined up for wildlife. The bigger a site is for wildlife, the more it gives habitats and species opportunities to expand. It gives them more protection. They also need to be better: the habitat must be as good as it possibly can be. Finally, they have to be joined up through the enhanced connections of wildlife corridors. In short, we need to create a joined up network for bigger and better wildlife sites.

The dream – a Nature Recovery Network for Cornwall

Lawton review led to action to try to connect up sites for wildlife. Cornwall was chosen by Defra to be one of five Local Nature Recovery pilot projects in England. Work on the Cornwall Local Nature Recovery Strategy started in September 2020. The aim? To specify how Cornwall will achieve a target of 30% of the land and seas of Cornwall and Scilly being positively managed for nature by 2030. Find out more about our panel discussion on that topic here.

At Cornwall Wildlife Trust, we’re dreaming of a Nature Recovery Network for Cornwall. We want to create larger areas of habitat which are connected by wildlife corridors. We hope to ensure land is actively being put into recovery for nature’s benefit.

We’re re-wetting peatlands to restore a higher diversity of plants and animals – as well as storing more carbon. We’re also working with farmers to help them use regenerative techniques, reducing their use of pesticides and artificial fertilisers, and restoring soils and wildlife.

I could go on, but you can find out more here.

So, let’s get onto the most important question…

Can we make the dream a reality?

This is where it gets serious. Stay with me for another 2 minutes while I offer you a concrete example.

Let me take you to our largest nature reserve: Helman Tor. It’s one of the most important sites for nature in Cornwall - a mosaic of woodland, wetland, heathland, and species-rich grassland habitats that support some of our most threatened and rare wildlife.

Not only that, it’s also a wonderful place to visit. The Tor offers spectacular views over the surrounding landscape, while providing a sense of ‘wilderness’ often missing from our countryside.

How does this relate to a Nature Recovery Network? We’ll get there. Just a quick bit of  history first. (It’s our 60^th year, after all.)

Back in 1980, Cornwall Wildlife Trust bought the first part of Northern Red Moor in mid-Cornwall, turning it into a nature reserve. Over the following decades, we’ve slowly increased the size of the site, now known as Helman Tor nature reserve – a 637 acre wildlife haven!

In other words, the history of Helman Tor nature reserve has been all about making it bigger, better and more joined up.

And we need to keep working on that.

Helman Tor is a place where you might catch a glimpse of marsh fritillary butterflies (one of Europe’s most threatened butterflies), willow tits (one of Britain’s rarest birds), hazel dormice (which can only be found in very few locations in Britain), or small red damselflies (yep, you’ve got it – they’re pretty rare, too).

The point is… at Helman Tor we’re working our socks off to make the dream a reality. We've simply got to give wildlife the best opportunity on sites like this. But we also have to look at what’s going happening on the other side of the fences of our nature reserves.

Joined up dreaming

We can’t just pull up the drawbridge around our nature reserves, give ourselves at Cornwall Wildlife Trust a smug pat on the back, and think we’ve solved the problem.

We need to look outside. We need to look at the wider countryside. We need to look beyond the boundaries of nature reserves like Helman Tor.

Farming is critical. Fishing is critical.

So, we’re doing joined up dreaming.

Projects which run from reserves like Helman Tor all the way down to the sea.

Projects which consider everything that's going on in the environment.

Projects which follow watercourses, work with farmers, and – once we reach the sea – work with the fishermen and all the communities who have interest in the area. A true Nature Recovery Network where we live, work and play.

We’d love you to dream with us.