A fantastic new project, Red Squirrels United, has received funding for the next three years to help conserve red squirrels across Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland. This project has been in the pipeline for a while; many of us have helped the Ulster Wildlife, the lead partner in Northern Ireland, to develop NI’s part of this bid.  [Read more…]

The Northern Ireland Squirrel Forum (NISF) in partnership with Red Squirrel Groups across Northern Ireland is appealing to motorists to “slow your speed, save our red squirrels,” with new warning signs now available for homeowners to display on their bins to highlight the danger of speeding traffic.

Red squirrels are one of Ireland’s most iconic, native mammals, but sadly they are under severe threat, as increasing numbers of invasive grey squirrels compete for habitat and food, and transmit a deadly disease. But many red squirrels are also killed by motorists, as they are now confined to small isolated patches of woodland. [Read more…]

The Challenge Fund, funded through the plastic bag tax levy and administered by the Northern Ireland Environment Link (NIEL), is in it’s fourth year of funding conservation and environmental work across Northern Ireland. The round this year made £1.3m of grant monies available to communities, schools and organisations for projects.

One of the local groups to benefit this year was the Fermanagh Red Squirrel Group (FRSG). The group successfully partnered with the Derrygonnelly Field Studies Centre in the two previous consecutive years in outreach education work. They also supported the work of Quercus at Queens University in a citizen-science project looking at red squirrel and grey squirrel distribution in the county last year, again funded by the Challenge Fund. [Read more…]

Field Studies Council (FSC) Derrygonnelly and the Fermanagh Red Squirrel Group (FRSG) have successfully collaborated the last couple of years on two Red Squirrel outreach education projects. The projects were made possible through funding from the NGO Challenge Fund administered by Northern Ireland Environment Link (NIEL). [Read more…]

A unique partnership between Quercus of Queens University Belfast, the National Trust and the Fermanagh Red Squirrel Group has been taking place the last couple of months, March and April 2014. Funded by the Challenge Fund through the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, the project is seeking to gain a better understanding of the distribution of red squirrels across the whole county. [Read more…]

Quercus, which is part of Queens University Belfast, is responsible for conducting high quality ecological research within the school of Biological Sciences. Quercus is working in partnership with the National Trust and the Fermanagh Red Squirrel Group to find out more about the distribution status of the native and endangered red squirrel across the county. This piece of work is being made possible via a grant from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency’s Challenge Fund. [Read more…]

The National Trust in partnership with the Fermanagh Red Squirrel Group held two separate events on Saturday 5^th October at their Florence Court property to coincide with Red Squirrel Week.

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County Fermanagh is famed for its lakeland landscape with its wetland habitats, associated wildlife and all the amenity opportunities that they provide to both locals and tourists alike.

Fermanagh also has some spectacular and unique upland habitats including blanket bog, heathland and forest, arguably as unique and valuable in terms of biodiversity and recreational opportunities as their lowland counterparts.

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Over 40 people attended a recent meeting, organised through the Local Biodiversity Action Planning process, on the subject of red squirrel conservation.

Representatives from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, Forest Service and the National Trust explained the work they undertake for the species and options for protecting our local populations. Some important messages were communicated such as the threat from grey squirrels and the importance of local action to supplement the work of the agencies.

[Read more…]

Red squirrels are one of our most charismatic mammals and are originally a resident of our native broadleaved woodlands but more recently have established conifer forests as their strongholds.

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