The result of a project to install advanced listening devices on ten farms across Cumbria and North Yorkshire to record the dawn chorus and identify the variety of birds found on them has been revealed.
The highest number – 60 species of birds including cuckoo – were recorded at Pete Webster’s tenancy at Lawkland near Settle with 55 detected at Matson Ground, a second farm he manages close to Windermere.
The idea came from a collaboration between Carbon Calling, an event championing regenerative farming, and Chirrup.ai a company which helps land managers track biodiversity through birdsong.
The collaboration saw monitoring devices set up on ten farms with the aim of proving how the health and biodiversity of farming landscapes can vary.
“It was great to be involved and we suspected we had a lot of different species but having confirmation by recording how often bird calls were recorded shows they are at home here,” Pete told Business Crack.
“Farming for nature is paramount which is why we create habitats aimed at encouraging wildlife to flourish. It’s something we believe doesn’t reduce productivity – in fact financially we’re better off as a result and our profitability would match anybody.”
Curlews, cuckoos and ring ouzel were among species detected on Pete’s farms which has encouraged him to continue creating more habitats for nature and open access to share it with human visitors too. A bird hide at Lawkland is a future plan while more trees ‘in the right place’ will be planted.
Last month Carbon Calling drew visitors from across the north to Cumbria.
The event is the idea of Nic Renison, whose family farm near Penrith, and Liz Genever who were inspired by the Groundswell Agricultural festival which provides a forum for farmers, growers and anyone interested in food production and the environment to learn more about regenerative farming systems.
For Pete, the initiative comes at an ideal time.
“Carbon Calling makes farmers think; for too long we haven’t had to educate ourselves on challenging the norm but with (financial) support drying up we need to think ‘how else can we farm?”
