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.
Following the success of this project, Quercus extended this trial citizen-science work across Northern Ireland in 2014/2015 which now includes the protected species, pine marten.
The FRSG successfully applied this year for funding to develop resources for volunteers, education activities and survey work. These resources will help to raise awareness of red squirrel conservation and encourage people to get involved in mammal recording. The group would also particularly like to thank the Ulster Wildlife for assisting with the project.
