Forestry Commission - News - back to orange - bright plans take off in the wyre forest

An exciting four year project to bring more butterflies to the Wyre Forest has been given a grant worth Ł74,000.

The ‘Back to Orange Project,’ is being funded by the SITA Trust to help conserve the distinctive fritillary butterflies for which the Wyre Forest is so well known. All fritillaries are predominantly orange, with a network of darker markings forming the chequered pattern from which the name ‘fritillary’ is derived.

Fritillary butterflies are not common in Britain and some species are extremely rare. The Wyre Forest is an important national and regional stronghold for the Pearl-bordered Fritillary, Small Pearl Bordered Fritillary and the Silver-washed Fritillary.

SITA Trust funding will be used for essential habitat restoration work in six special areas, to maintain the strongholds of these three fritillary butterflies in the Wyre Forest for future generations.

The Forestry Commission, Butterfly Conservation and Natural England are all closely involved with the ‘Back to Orange Project’. Butterfly Conservation has been working with the Forestry Commission in the Wyre Forest since the late 1980s, with work focusing on the survey and monitoring work and management advice.

The organisation’s Regional Officer for the West Midlands Dr Jenny Joy said: ‘The Back to Orange Project is a great opportunity to focus work on one of most important forests in the region. We are delighted to have this opportunity to extend the work we are able to do here in collaboration with the Forestry Commission and Natural England and to direct conservation work onto a much larger range of butterflies and moths and their habitats than we have been able to do before’.

The Wyre Forest's 6,500 acres is all that survives of a wood that once stretched along the Severn Valley from Worcester to Bridgnorth, making it a unique area to spot rare plants and animals. It has one the largest number of butterfly and moth species of any site in Britain. About 2,500 butterflies and moths have been recorded across the whole country and nearly half this number have been found in the Wyre Forest alone,

Once work starts on the Back to Orange Project, local people and visitors will be encouraged to come along and look at the butterflies and the improvements to their strongholds. The project will also collect valuable data about the interaction of rare butterflies within woodland.

The SITA Trust was set up in 1997 and runs three funding programmes. The ‘Back to Orange’ Project has received a grant from the Enriching Nature fund, which provides money for biodiversity projects within the vicinity of landfill sites in England.

The ‘Back to Orange’ project is part of a larger scheme to restore this beautiful landscape to the west of Birmingham. The ‘Grow With Wyre’ Scheme which is also funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund is a partnership project involving many local organisations and local specialist groups who will help to deliver 22 very varied projects over the next four years.

For more information about the ‘Back to Orange Project’ and the Wyre Forest Landscape Partnership Scheme, ‘Grow With Wyre’.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. IMAGES AVAILABLE:

2. For more information and for photographs or interview requests please contact Jo Fowler, Forestry Commission England Press Officer on 07833 672903, 01223 346034 or Gail Atkinson on 01584 813822.

3. SITA Trust: SITA Trust was set up in 1997 and runs three funding programmes including Enriching Nature – for biodiversity projects within the vicinity of landfill sites in England.

4. Each year, SITA Trust commits over Ł7 million nationwide through the Landfill Communities Fund, see www.sitatrust.org.uk. The Landfill Communities Fund (formerly the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme). Landfill tax was introduced in 1996 to encourage more sustainable ways of managing waste. The landfill tax legislation also brought about the Landfill Communities Fund. This scheme allows landfill operators to voluntarily donate 6.6% of their landfill tax liability to environmental improvement projects. The Landfill Communities Fund is independently regulated on behalf of HM Government’s Revenue & Customs by ENTRUST

5. The Forestry Commission is the government department responsible for forestry in Great Britain. It supports woodland owners with grants; tree felling licences, regulation and advice; promotes the benefits of forests and forestry; and advises Government on forestry policy. It manages more than a million hectares (2.5 million acres) of national forest land for public benefits such as sustainable timber production, public recreation, nature conservation, and rural and community development. For further information, visit www.forestry.gov.uk. The Forestry Commission is the Lead Partner in the ‘Grow with Wyre’ Scheme.

6. The Grow With Wyre scheme is being delivered by a partnership of the following organisations; Heritage Lottery Fund, Forestry Commission, Natural England, Wyre Forest District Council, Worcestershire County Council, Butterfly Conservation, Shropshire County Council, Wyre Forest Community Land Trust, Wyre Forest Study Group, National Trust and Bewdley Development Trust.

7. Butterfly Conservation is the UK charity taking action to save butterflies and moths. Butterfly Conservation staff and volunteers manage habitats to ensure their survival, with particular attention being given to threatened species. Butterfly Conservation has 12,000 members and is the largest organisation of its kind in Europe: www.butterfly-conservation.org

8. During the 20th century there has been an increasingly rapid decline in woodland butterflies with many species disappearing from their former range. The abundance of butterflies in woodlands has dropped by 43% over the last 16 years.

9. The Heritage Lottery Fund awarded a Stage One pass of Ł1.86million to the Wyre Forest Landscape Partnership Scheme.

10. HLF enables communities to celebrate, look after and learn more about our diverse heritage. From our great museums and historic buildings to local parks and beauty spots or recording and celebrating traditions, customs and history, HLF grants open up our nation’s heritage for everyone to enjoy. They have supported more than 26,000 projects, allocating Ł4billion across the UK. Website: www.hlf.org.uk.