Red Squirrel Project Home

OTHER RED SQUIRREL PROJECTS

There are a number of other projects in the UK to conserve red squirrels. Most have websites that have useful information and ideas. Visit these sites to see what other groups are doing :

Anglesey Red Squirrel Project is run by Menter Môn. Through a programme of grey squirrel control the Anglesey red population has increased from 20 in 1998 to about 100 today. There is also a captive-breeding programme underway in pine forests in the south of the island. An active ‘Friends’ group has help raised the profile of the important work being undertaken here.

Red Alert North England is a partnership of conservation organisations, woodland owners, universities and the public, all working to save the red squirrel. Their 'Save Our Squirrels' project has been awarded £626,000 by the Heritage Lottery Fund as part of a £1.1 million initiative to be managed and co-ordinated by Northumberland Wildlife Trust on behalf of the Red Alert North England partnership.

Red Alert is aiming to promote conservation policies that benefit the red squirrel and create 16 'reserves' and buffer zones where they will be safeguarded from the grey squirrel. With funding now in place, a team of six full time and one part time Red Squirrel Officers will be deployed from the Mersey to the Tyne and beyond.

© C. Shuttleworth

The UK Red Squirrel Group aims to improve communication and awareness of the conservation action and research into native red squirrels. Through its coordination and advisory roles, the UKRSG will develop best practice guidance for land owners, conservationists, statutory officials and home owners on how best to conserve red squirrels in our woodlands, and provide information for anyone concerned about red squirrels in the UK.

The Wales Squirrel Forum is made up of statutory, non-statutory organisations and local groups, was set up to implement red squirrel conservation in Wales.

The Red Squirrels In South Scotland Project was launched in 2000 with the appointment of two Red Squirrel Conservation Officers. The project is managed by The Southern Uplands Partnership and works closely with Red Alert South West Scotland in Dumfries and Galloway and the Borders Squirrel Management Group in the Scottish Borders, as well Red Alert North East and Red Alert North West who operate in northern England.

The European Squirrel Initiative was founded in June 2002. Its aim is to create, develop and maintain a campaign to win the support and commitment of governments throughout Europe in securing the future of the red squirrel through the effective control of the grey squirrel.

The Wight Squirrel Project is an independent, local charity. The Project works with (and sometimes against!) other organisations such as the Forestry Commission, Isle of Wight Council, Wildlife Trusts, National Trust, etc to undertake regular research, monitoring, survey and raising awareness. The Wight Squirrel Project was founded and is currently managed, voluntarily, by Helen Butler, the Isle of Wight's leading Red Squirrel expert.

Save our Squirrels is the largest single-species conservation project taking place in the UK at present, and has a budget of £1.2M over the next three years to undertake red squirrel conservation, information, and access projects in the North of England and beyond. Over 50% of this budget has come from the Heritage Lottery Fund, with the balance being funded by the public and private sector businesses that make up Red Alert North England and donations from the general public.
Save our Squirrels was created by Red Alert North England in 2006 to deliver the North of England Red Squirrel Strategy, but is managed and directed by Northumberland Wildlife Trust. However, our area of operations is absolutely huge - stretching from Berwick upon Tweed across to the Solway Firth, and all the way down to Merseyside! Within this area, we have 16 dedicated Red Squirrel Reserves - areas of (mostly coniferous) forest which have been identified as giving the red squirrel the best chance of continued survival in the North of England. All the landowners and managers of these forests have signed up to an agreement that they will manage the habitat to the maximum benefit of the red squirrel through carefully planned felling and replanting programmes.

redsquirrelwatch.org.uk is dedicated to the study and conservation of British Red Squirrels, and to promote interest these fascinating animals by the use of still and moving images. They have a Webcam located in the heart of the Cairngorms National Park in the highlands of Scotland that allows you to view the squirrels feeding. There are no grey squirrels in this area, only reds. They have wired our Squirrel Feeder to a datalogger so that they can monitor feeding activity throughout the year and have written special software so that this data can be presented on the website.