Lots of cosy new homes for birds & bats as well as comfy seats at Peel Park & the Coppice LNR!
In autumn 2023, WOODY C.I.C. created and installed 30 bird boxes and 10 bat boxes across the site. A variety of different openings for the bird boxes were made so that they will benefit lots of different bird species like Blue Tits, Marsh Tits, Great Tits, sparrows, Nuthatches, Robins, Wrens, Song Thrust, & more! We will be keeping a close eye on them to see if they have any inhabitants in the spring! The bat boxes will be suitable for both species of pipistrelles, Common and Soprano as well as other species that are present in the area such as Natterer's, Noctule, and Brown Long-eared. All bats are listed as vulnerable and are protected by UK law; inhabited boxes can only be handled/opened by a licensed bat worker. It can take a year or two for a bat box to become inhabited so we will need to be patient but it will be very worth it to see the bats flourish on the site!
They also built and installed a Barn Owl box near Pleck Meadow. The box will be able to house a Barn Owl and her chicks, we will be paying close attention to see if the house becomes occupied! It has been installed overlooking the meadow so that the owl will have plenty of open space for hunting.
WOODY C.I.C. has repaired 5 benches across the site and installed two new ones along the new Pleck Meadow path allowing for more areas to rest your feet! In particular, the path along Pleck Meadow is steep in some areas so they have been placed in prime spots so you can rest and catch your breath if need be.
The wood used to make all of these was sourced from Larch trees that were felled on-site to benefit native Oak in a management method knows as "halo-thinning." The Larch and the Oak were planted near each other because Larch is a good 'nurse' species as it grows faster than the Oak which is more susceptible to weather damage. The Oak are shielded by the taller Larch so that they can grow to a size which won't be as vulnerable to the environment. Now the Larch have done their job they can be felled and used to improve the site in other ways whilst the Oak can now grow bigger to fill the gaps left by the Larch. The Larch were felled in autumn and winter 2022/23 but the timber needed time to cure before it could be made into habitat boxes/benches or else the wood could warp.
This work was funded by the HEAL Project which ended in March 2023. A big thank you to the Green Recovery Challenge Fund which made this possible!
