TREE sparrow villages are hoped to improve biodiversity in Warwickshire.
Warwickshire Wildlife Trust has received over £17,000 from Severn Trent’s ‘Boost for Biodiversity’ grant scheme.
The funds will be used to create over 100 tree sparrow boxes across some ten local farms part of the ‘Arden Farm Wildlife Network’.
Further land will be cultivated to grow wild bird seed as well as pollen and nectar flowers.
Tree sparrows are smaller and shyer than their common house sparrow counterpart and have suffered a severe decline over the last few decades.
Winter is a particular struggle for the birds due to changes in agriculture and a lack of ‘winter stubble’, or crop remains – their main food source in the colder months.
Project leader Ian Jelley said: “We are delighted to secure this grant funding from Severn Trent as it provides a lifeline to tree sparrows in our area, which like many farmland birds have declined in recent years. The farmers in our Arden Farm Wildlife Network are really keen to make positive changes to make space for nature on their farms and we are supporting them to create bigger, better, more joined up areas that will benefit a range of species over the coming years.”
Funding was also granted to the RSPB to improve habitats for wading birds in the Peak District and to farms in Worcestershire to create wildflower boundaries to encourage plant and insect diversity.
The scheme aims to create more sustainable natural resources and a more resilient environment.
