Forging a path for wildlife protection
Published 24 Jan 2012 10:00
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A WILDLIFE enthusiast is on a path to setting up a conservation group in the Ascot area.
Burleigh Road resident Anne Ayres is a keen environmentalist and has been interested in preserving the badger sets in her neighbourhood for many years.
Now she wants to find other nature lovers and start up a conservation group that creates wildlife corridors around the Ascot, Sunninghill and Sunningdale area to allow creatures to thrive.
Mrs Ayres said: "There are areas of green that need to be kept linked, it's about conserving what we already have and increasing biodiversity."
Mrs Ayres has presented the idea to the Neighbourhood Planning group for Ascot and the Sunnings, which is creating a document that will give residents a say in what developments are appropriate for their area.
At the meeting last week enthusiasm was expressed for ensuring that nature habitats are protected and wildlife corridors are created.
Mrs Ayres added: "Conservation doesn't mean stopping building houses, it's about looking at it in a sustainable and thoughtful manner.
"We do have a lot of brown development sites in the area and we need to preserve the wildlife that is on them."
She also wants to encourage people to consider helping wildlife in their own back gardens by giving animals and birds a place to shelter and nest.
One way to do this is to maintain hedgerows in gardens and leave gaps under fences so that animals can travel around with ease.
She added: "This creates areas which connect places. We need to encourage people to notice the wildlife in their areas - for example not to cut hedges when birds are nesting, to avoid using slug pellets and to put up bird and bat boxes."
Her vision for the group is to hold regular wildlife talks and organise social events to teach people about the wildlife around them.
It is her hope that the group could also collect data for the Thames Valley Environmental Record Centre, which logs information about wildlife in the area.
To get involved, email Mrs Ayres at aeaj@btinternet.com
This article appeared in Villager 20 Jan 12
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