Bird watchers got closer than ever before to one of the noisiest and most spectacular rituals in the bird world today (Tuesday, April 20), when a black grouse lekking hide was officially opened in Clocaenog Forest.
The new hide, built jointly by Forestry Commission Wales and RSPB Cymru, was opened by Dewi Davies, Regional Strategy Director for Tourism Partnership North Wales, during a special "lek watch" to mark the launch of the Commission's Wild Woods campaign, aimed at getting people out to discover the wealth of wildlife in our woods.
The wooden viewpoint - the only lekking hide in Wales - means conservationists and bird watchers can get to within 100 metres of this rare woodland bird as it goes through its unique mating ceremony, which can be heard for miles around.
Habitat loss and overgrazing meant the species was predicted to become extinct from the Welsh countryside by 2020, but a last-ditch effort by FC Wales and RSPB Cymru, along with other partners, is paying dividends, and the black grouse is now one of the "champion species" featured in the Wild Woods campaign.
In the 10 years between 1986 and1997, the numbers of Wales’s black grouse more than halved. Only 131 displaying male birds were thought to exist.
FC Wales and RSPB Cymru joined forces in an attempt to save the bird by changing the landscape mosaic which the black grouse requires. Today, forests in north Wales are being re-modelled to recreate favourable habitats not seen in Wales since the beginning of the 20th Century.
There are now thought to be about 340 lekking males in Wales, who go through their elaborate courtship ceremony in late April and early May. Male black grouse gather on the lek site and call to the hens by bubbling and cooing. The males then display themselves to the hens with mock sparring and jostling for position, with the hens attracted to the most dominant male.
The spectacular cacophony draws early-risers from miles around and, with wildlife increasingly seen as a major contributor to the visitor experience, helps to extend the tourism season in the area.
FC Wales Conservation Manager Iolo Lloyd said,
"We're now seeing the benefits of the work we've been doing with the RSPB to restructure our forests to help the black grouse - such as removing unproductive conifers, selectively thinning trees along the forest edge and creating wet feeding areas - and thanks to this hide the public can get closer than ever to enjoy the incredible spectacle of black grouse lekking.
"The fact that Clocaenog forest has been selected as a champion site for our Wild Woods campaign is a testimony to all the hard work over the past few years to restore the black grouse's fortunes."
RSPB Cymru’s Senior Showing People Birds Officer, Becky Clews said,
“This is a unique opportunity for the people of Wales and visitors to Wales to view our beautiful countryside and wildlife from the secrecy and warmth of a hide.
“The location of this hide will be widely advertised so local communities will benefit from the increase in visitor numbers. Several guided walks will be taking place throughout the lekking season but should anyone wish to go alone they need to book a place to avoid overcrowding and disturbance to the black grouse.”
Other champion Wild Woods sites in Wales include Nant-yr-Arian, near Aberystwyth (red kites), Pembrey forest, near Llanelli (butterflies) and Afan Forest Park, near Port Talbot (fallow deer).
Information on which animals can be seen, and in which woods they are likely to be spotted, is available on the Forestry Commission website on www.forestry.gov.uk/wildwoods
To book a place at the hide during the season please call 01824 750 702 or for further information call RSPB Cymru on 029 2035 3000 or email Cymru@rspb.org.uk
NOTES TO EDITORS
- The Black Grouse is recognised as a species of high national conservation importance. It is included on the Red List of Birds of conservation concern (Anon, 1996) and is a priority species of the UK Biodiversity Steering Group Species List for Action (The UK Steering Report, 1995).
- The Welsh Black Grouse Recovery Project Phase 1 ran for four years and ended in 2001. It was funded by the RSPB and by a grant from the European Agriculture Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) and a Rural Development Grant from the National Assembly for Wales. The Forestry Commission and the Countryside Council for Wales also contributed to the project.
- Phase II of the Black Grouse Recovery Project began in 2003 and is part of the Aren’t Welsh Birds Brilliant! project. Aren’t Welsh Birds Brilliant! is coordinated by RSPB Cymru in partnership with Forestry Commission Wales, the Countryside Council for Wales and Enfys (part of the Green Spaces and Sustainable Communities programme of the New Opportunities Fund administered in Wales by the Wales Council for Voluntary Action).
- Wales's forests cover almost 14% of the country's land area - equivalent to the size of Carmarthenshire. The public forests are owned by the Welsh Assembly Government and Forestry Commission Wales is the government department which looks after these forests on the Assembly's behalf.
- The Welsh Assembly Government owns 40% of Wales's woodlands (665,000 acres), with the remained either privately owned or in the voluntary sector.
- More information on the woodlands of Wales is available on the Forestry Commission Wales website, www.forestry.gov.uk/wales
- For more information on the black grouse at Clocaenog, contact Iolo Lloyd on 01938 557405 or RSPB Cymru on 02920 353000 or e-mail Cymru@rspb.org.uk
Media enquiries to Forestry Commission Information Officer Clive Davies on 01970 625866, mobile 07788 190922, or Marian Gray on 07787 757982.