0:00:02 > 0:00:04Britain's wildlife needs your help.
0:00:04 > 0:00:08Many of our favourite wild creatures are under threat.
0:00:10 > 0:00:11From persecution...
0:00:11 > 0:00:12..from pollution...
0:00:12 > 0:00:14..and alien predators.
0:00:17 > 0:00:19Others are losing their homes...
0:00:19 > 0:00:21..suffering from injury or disease...
0:00:21 > 0:00:25..or just struggling to survive in the modern world.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31Some could be extinct within our lifetime if we don't act now.
0:00:31 > 0:00:35There's nothing in the sky or even in the trees there, is there?
0:00:35 > 0:00:38But you can help bring them back from the brink.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40Together, we can fight their enemies...
0:00:40 > 0:00:42..restore the places where they live...
0:00:42 > 0:00:45..and stop their decline in its tracks.
0:00:48 > 0:00:50Release.
0:00:50 > 0:00:52Whoa!
0:00:52 > 0:00:53So join our campaign...
0:00:53 > 0:00:56..to save our wonderful wildlife...
0:00:56 > 0:00:58..for us all to enjoy.
0:00:58 > 0:01:00- Oh, look! - SHE CHUCKLES
0:01:00 > 0:01:01Oh! Hello to you!
0:01:01 > 0:01:05I mean, how can you not just fall in love with that?
0:01:20 > 0:01:24Throughout Britain there are enchanting places.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28Somewhere to go to escape the worries of everyday life,
0:01:28 > 0:01:31and to reconnect with the natural world.
0:01:33 > 0:01:37Our nation is bursting with life.
0:01:37 > 0:01:40A phenomenal force of nature is all around us,
0:01:40 > 0:01:44and Britain's woodlands are the jewel in this glittering crown.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50Ancient trees, vast woods and forests
0:01:50 > 0:01:55and wild creatures that remind us of our place in the natural world.
0:01:57 > 0:02:01Our woods take time to give up their secrets.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05You have to be patient, watching, waiting and listening.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07But if you just know where to look,
0:02:07 > 0:02:12our woodlands are the richest habitat for wildlife in Britain.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21From badgers to bluebells...
0:02:21 > 0:02:25butterflies to beetles...
0:02:25 > 0:02:28woodpeckers to wrens...
0:02:28 > 0:02:32and trees that may be over a thousand years old.
0:02:36 > 0:02:40But now Britain's woodland wildlife is in big trouble.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43Centuries of loss followed by decades of neglect
0:02:43 > 0:02:47has meant that our woods and their precious wildlife
0:02:47 > 0:02:49are in serious decline.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53Our team will be championing three woodland animals that face
0:02:53 > 0:02:55major threats to their survival.
0:02:57 > 0:03:02Nick Baker goes in search of the UK's most venomous creature.
0:03:02 > 0:03:03Oh, there, there, look, look, look!
0:03:03 > 0:03:08Day by day they get rarer and rarer. We are in real risk of losing them.
0:03:08 > 0:03:10Iolo Williams takes on a fight
0:03:10 > 0:03:12to protect one of our best-loved animals.
0:03:12 > 0:03:17Well, in my view, it's time to strike back against the grey menace.
0:03:17 > 0:03:19And Gordon Buchanan finds out
0:03:19 > 0:03:22if it's too late for Britain's rarest predator.
0:03:22 > 0:03:26This is one of the most endangered mammals in the entire world.
0:03:34 > 0:03:40I'm in the middle of a magnificent woodland in the heart of Britain,
0:03:40 > 0:03:44and it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.
0:03:57 > 0:04:01What I love about woodlands is as soon as you walk into them,
0:04:01 > 0:04:03you immediately shrink.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07It's like being dropped into a big, green, ecological bowl.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09And when you feel small in the natural world,
0:04:09 > 0:04:13that's when your everyday problems just drop into perspective.
0:04:13 > 0:04:14But the sad fact is,
0:04:14 > 0:04:18there are very few woods as good as this left in Britain.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23Britain was once an island of trees,
0:04:23 > 0:04:27covered in a dense layer of woods and forests.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33These vast woodlands are as complex and intricate as any city.
0:04:33 > 0:04:36Their trees are the equivalent of ancient cathedrals
0:04:36 > 0:04:38or modern skyscrapers.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44But now, just a fraction of our ancient woodlands remain.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47And it would be a tragedy if we lost them.
0:04:52 > 0:04:54The destruction of our nation's woodlands began
0:04:54 > 0:04:59over 5,000 years ago, when the first farmers began clearing
0:04:59 > 0:05:01forests to create farmland.
0:05:02 > 0:05:07Today, only 2% of Britain's ancient woodlands remain,
0:05:07 > 0:05:09and our wildlife is suffering,
0:05:09 > 0:05:13with many of our best-loved species struggling to survive.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19One of the biggest problems here and for conservation at large,
0:05:19 > 0:05:21has been the arrival of alien species,
0:05:21 > 0:05:25some of which have wreaked havoc with our home-grown wildlife.
0:05:25 > 0:05:27Naturalist Iolo Williams has been in Wales
0:05:27 > 0:05:29to see one of his favourite animals,
0:05:29 > 0:05:32now threatened by an unwelcome cousin from abroad.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38It's the bushy-tailed star of children's stories,
0:05:38 > 0:05:43the king of our woodlands and an icon of British conservation.
0:05:43 > 0:05:44But if you're under 40,
0:05:44 > 0:05:48you've probably never even caught a glimpse of one.
0:05:48 > 0:05:50The red squirrel.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59If you want to see one for yourself, you'd better hurry.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02The red squirrel is predicted to become extinct
0:06:02 > 0:06:05on mainland Britain within 20 years.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07That's right, in just 20 years.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10For me, and for anyone else who loves our native wildlife,
0:06:10 > 0:06:13that is truly devastating.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18I want you to join my campaign to save the red squirrel.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22Just look at him. Those big, brown eyes, that thick bushy tail.
0:06:22 > 0:06:26It's the animal that inspired me to get into nature.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30One of my earliest memories is going out on a family picnic
0:06:30 > 0:06:35and looking up into the tallest branches of a Sitka spruce
0:06:35 > 0:06:38and seeing a red squirrel looking back down at me.
0:06:38 > 0:06:41Unfortunately, they've all gone from around here,
0:06:41 > 0:06:43not a single one left.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46And the reason for that is another furry creature,
0:06:46 > 0:06:49one that I hate with an absolute passion.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53The American grey squirrel.
0:06:53 > 0:06:54Numbers have rocketed
0:06:54 > 0:06:58since it first arrived in Britain more than a century ago.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03And just wait till you hear the story of how they got here.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08It all started in 1876, when a pair of grey squirrels
0:07:08 > 0:07:12was brought over from North America by Thomas Brocklehurst.
0:07:12 > 0:07:15He let them escape from his home in Cheshire,
0:07:15 > 0:07:20and they multiplied, spreading a disease lethal to the red squirrel.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23Today, there are at least three million greys,
0:07:23 > 0:07:27and they're driving red squirrels to the brink of extinction.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30So, how do I get red squirrels back to my home village?
0:07:30 > 0:07:34And how do we get them to recolonise the whole of Britain?
0:07:34 > 0:07:39Well, in my view, it's time to strike back against the grey menace.
0:07:41 > 0:07:46Red squirrels have almost been driven out of mainland Wales,
0:07:46 > 0:07:49so I'm heading north to the island of Anglesey to try to get
0:07:49 > 0:07:52a glimpse of one once more.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59In 1997 there were just 40 red squirrels
0:07:59 > 0:08:04left in the whole of Anglesey, and this growing tide of greys
0:08:04 > 0:08:07was threatening to wipe them out altogether.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10But today the grey has been eradicated from the island,
0:08:10 > 0:08:13and I'm delighted to say the reds have returned.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18To see them, it helps to have a trick up your sleeve.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24Now, if you're lucky to have red squirrels around you,
0:08:24 > 0:08:28what they love, apparently, are hazelnuts.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31So, I'm going to fill up this feeder in the hope...
0:08:32 > 0:08:33..that this will draw them out.
0:08:36 > 0:08:38I thought I was in for a long wait.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42But after only 15 minutes, they started to appear.
0:08:43 > 0:08:44Oh, wow.
0:08:47 > 0:08:48What a little beauty.
0:08:48 > 0:08:49Bright red.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55That has got to be the cutest animal in the whole of Britain.
0:09:00 > 0:09:03That's really made my day. It's made my week, to be honest with you.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08I get quite a few people asking me
0:09:08 > 0:09:11what I've got against grey squirrels, and what I would tell those people
0:09:11 > 0:09:16is, "Go out there and go and have a look at the red squirrels,
0:09:16 > 0:09:18"cos there just is no comparison."
0:09:21 > 0:09:24These are just beautiful creatures.
0:09:24 > 0:09:29The grey squirrel is an alien, American species.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32And compared to the red squirrels, they are just...
0:09:32 > 0:09:34They're tree rats, basically.
0:09:34 > 0:09:35They really are.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42The red squirrel evolved over thousands of years
0:09:42 > 0:09:46to live in harmony with the creatures of the British woodland.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49The American grey lives in much higher densities here,
0:09:49 > 0:09:53throwing this delicate ecosystem out of balance.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00The red squirrel's comeback on Anglesey shows that
0:10:00 > 0:10:01something can be done.
0:10:02 > 0:10:04It's a project run by an old friend of mine.
0:10:06 > 0:10:07Dr Craig Shuttleworth.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16So, Craig, why are grey squirrels so bad for red squirrels?
0:10:16 > 0:10:17Well, they're doing two things, Iolo.
0:10:17 > 0:10:20The first is, they're out-competing them for resources.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22They eat exactly the same sorts of foods,
0:10:22 > 0:10:24tree seeds and buds and flowers.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27But the other thing is, they carry this virus - squirrel pox virus.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29It doesn't harm the grey squirrel,
0:10:29 > 0:10:33but if they give it to red squirrels it's fatal within a few weeks,
0:10:33 > 0:10:35and it causes horrendous rates of mortality.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39So, once you get greys in amongst reds, that's it - the reds disappear.
0:10:39 > 0:10:42Absolutely. You can't have the two together.
0:10:42 > 0:10:43We've got to have reds
0:10:43 > 0:10:46that are in areas where no grey squirrels are present.
0:10:46 > 0:10:49You, then, are in favour of a grey squirrel cull, are you?
0:10:49 > 0:10:50Absolutely.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56But not everyone on Anglesey supported the cull.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59One local woman, Gwen, did not at first take kindly
0:10:59 > 0:11:03when asked permission to trap and kill grey squirrels on her land.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06I was really shocked, absolutely shocked.
0:11:06 > 0:11:07The answer, I'm sure, was no, was it?
0:11:07 > 0:11:10Yeah, the answer was a very certain, very determined no.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13And... "Get lost"!
0:11:13 > 0:11:16But no, it was an aberration, really,
0:11:16 > 0:11:20because now, having seen the reds, I absolutely realise that there is...
0:11:20 > 0:11:23It's a wonderful thing to do.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26Gwen has taken to videoing her red squirrels,
0:11:26 > 0:11:30and her favourite, Hazel, even sneaks into her home from time to time.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40Back on the mainland, the grey is much harder to control,
0:11:40 > 0:11:45and the front line is 200 miles north, in the Lake District.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48This is the border country.
0:11:48 > 0:11:52The thin red line where red squirrels still hold the upper hand.
0:11:52 > 0:11:57But the greys are invading from the south, and they have to be stopped.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03I'm joining Nick Mason on a hunt for grey squirrels.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11What's Mike doing here, Nick?
0:12:11 > 0:12:15This morning he's in this woodland, which has red squirrels in it,
0:12:15 > 0:12:17but it also has greys.
0:12:17 > 0:12:19And what he's attempting to do is make sure
0:12:19 > 0:12:25we remove greys trying to get a foothold in this woodland.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27Shooting and trapping them as they try and do so.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29But some people would accuse you
0:12:29 > 0:12:32of just replacing one furry animal with another one.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37Continuing to have red squirrels here means killing another animal.
0:12:37 > 0:12:42And obviously there are moral issues
0:12:42 > 0:12:44with this kind of conservation work.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47We've got to meet that head-on, but undoubtedly,
0:12:47 > 0:12:50people who've got red squirrels in their gardens,
0:12:50 > 0:12:52around them in the woodlands next to which they live,
0:12:52 > 0:12:55they want to hang onto those red squirrels,
0:12:55 > 0:12:58and we've got an obligation to work with them, to make that happen.
0:12:58 > 0:13:03- GROUP SINGS HARMONY: - # Red squirrel in the morning
0:13:03 > 0:13:08# Red squirrel in the evening
0:13:08 > 0:13:09# Red squirrel... #
0:13:09 > 0:13:12The good news is that red squirrels are increasing in places
0:13:12 > 0:13:15like Grasmere, where the hard work of local volunteers
0:13:15 > 0:13:18has brought them back to the home of Wordsworth.
0:13:21 > 0:13:22I'm meeting Jackie,
0:13:22 > 0:13:27who coordinates hundreds of volunteers right across Cumbria.
0:13:27 > 0:13:28Look, can you see them up there?
0:13:28 > 0:13:30They're up there on that tree on the left.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32Playing around, running round and round.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35Oh, yeah, yeah. I can see one.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37So, how did you get involved as a volunteer
0:13:37 > 0:13:39in the first place, then, Jackie?
0:13:39 > 0:13:42Oh, about 20 years ago this wonderful old man came along
0:13:42 > 0:13:45and asked me if I would do some grey control,
0:13:45 > 0:13:49and everybody in the area thought he was absolutely crazy.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51But in fact we went along with it,
0:13:51 > 0:13:54and it's because of that that we still have red squirrels in Cumbria.
0:13:54 > 0:13:58Without controlling the greys, you just wouldn't have reds.
0:13:58 > 0:13:59We wouldn't have reds.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02Reds don't need anything - they don't need special habitat,
0:14:02 > 0:14:05they don't need special food, they just need to be free of the greys
0:14:05 > 0:14:08and they can survive very happily, and they can thrive.
0:14:08 > 0:14:09It means a lot to me personally
0:14:09 > 0:14:12because I don't want to see another British mammal become extinct
0:14:12 > 0:14:14when there is something that I can do about it,
0:14:14 > 0:14:17and there is something that we can do about this.
0:14:17 > 0:14:18If we had done nothing over the last 20 years,
0:14:18 > 0:14:21there would be very few reds left, and the greys would just take over.
0:14:21 > 0:14:25Mm-hm. And, I mean, when you see one you just realise how beautiful it is.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28Yes, absolutely. It's absolutely exquisite.
0:14:33 > 0:14:37It's not the grey squirrel's fault, it's just not supposed to be here.
0:14:37 > 0:14:42It's a non-native species, and it's creating havoc with our own wildlife.
0:14:42 > 0:14:48And culling - it's not an easy or a pleasant option, but it does work.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51And I think these are the tough decisions we have to make
0:14:51 > 0:14:56if we're going to save the native red squirrel from extinction.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10The red squirrel problem isn't new,
0:15:10 > 0:15:12but it represents how bad things can be
0:15:12 > 0:15:16when animals move to parts of the world they don't come from.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20When alien animals move in, natives just don't have the time
0:15:20 > 0:15:24to evolve ways of coping to live alongside their new neighbours.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27But it's not just single species that are vulnerable
0:15:27 > 0:15:29from alien invaders.
0:15:29 > 0:15:32Our precious woodlands are under threat too,
0:15:32 > 0:15:36from another non-native species running wild through our forests.
0:15:38 > 0:15:41I've just seen a muntjac deer over there.
0:15:41 > 0:15:44It's always quite exciting seeing a deer, but they're not actually
0:15:44 > 0:15:46that welcome round here, because they do a fair amount of damage.
0:15:46 > 0:15:48They eat a lot of these woodland plants,
0:15:48 > 0:15:51and a lot of the new coppice shoots.
0:15:51 > 0:15:54In fact, they've been nicknamed "ASBO Bambi."
0:15:55 > 0:15:58Muntjacs were first brought to Britain from Asia
0:15:58 > 0:15:59in the 19th century,
0:15:59 > 0:16:03when they were released at Woburn Abbey in Buckinghamshire.
0:16:03 > 0:16:07But in the 1920s they escaped, and began breeding wild.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10Since then they've spread across much of the UK,
0:16:10 > 0:16:13devouring woodland plants at a horrifying rate,
0:16:13 > 0:16:16and destroying habitats for breeding birds.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19They're not that tall, so they often evade being hunted,
0:16:19 > 0:16:21because there's tall vegetation around.
0:16:23 > 0:16:27The muntjac is one of over 3,000 non-native animals
0:16:27 > 0:16:31and plants in Britain, many of which upset the natural
0:16:31 > 0:16:34balance of our precious wildlife habitats.
0:16:35 > 0:16:38We spend £1.7 billion a year
0:16:38 > 0:16:42trying to control our non-native species.
0:16:42 > 0:16:47So that will give you a real sense of how serious this problem is.
0:16:49 > 0:16:53And even one of our best-loved woodland wild flowers
0:16:53 > 0:16:55is also in big trouble.
0:16:56 > 0:16:58Of all the awesome sights of spring,
0:16:58 > 0:17:02this one is hard to beat, this vivid carpet of blue.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06It's so welcome after such a drab winter.
0:17:06 > 0:17:08In fact, bluebells regularly top the list
0:17:08 > 0:17:11of Britain's favourite wild flower.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15But they're not just eye candy, they're also ecologically important,
0:17:15 > 0:17:19because over half the world's population of bluebells
0:17:19 > 0:17:22grow right here in our woods.
0:17:28 > 0:17:33But now the very future of these beautiful flowers is under threat
0:17:33 > 0:17:37from another alien invader, this time from Spain.
0:17:38 > 0:17:42Spanish bluebells look similar to our native variety,
0:17:42 > 0:17:45but can be told apart by the way the flowers just stick out
0:17:45 > 0:17:50from the stems instead of drooping and nodding like the British ones.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52Both of them are pretty flowers,
0:17:52 > 0:17:55but Spanish bluebells live in our parks and gardens
0:17:55 > 0:18:00and sometimes hop over the fence to hybridise with the British ones.
0:18:00 > 0:18:04Now, if this keeps happening, this classic springtime spectacle
0:18:04 > 0:18:06could be changed for ever.
0:18:09 > 0:18:14The fact that one of our most iconic native species, the bluebell,
0:18:14 > 0:18:18is in danger shows how resolute we need to be in tackling
0:18:18 > 0:18:21the threats to our woodland wildlife.
0:18:21 > 0:18:24One other iconic woodland creature is also under threat,
0:18:24 > 0:18:28but it is managing to survive in a rather unusual location,
0:18:28 > 0:18:31as lifelong reptile fan Nick Baker discovered.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34SHOUTING
0:18:38 > 0:18:39Greenham Common.
0:18:39 > 0:18:43This is where the United States Air Force kept their cruise missiles,
0:18:43 > 0:18:45each armed with a nuclear warhead powerful enough
0:18:45 > 0:18:50to kill millions of people and plunge us into World War III.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52The apocalypse.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55A generation of women fought the authorities for two decades
0:18:55 > 0:18:59to stop the American nuclear presence in Britain.
0:19:00 > 0:19:02But while battle raged at the fences,
0:19:02 > 0:19:07one creature was staking its claim to the land within.
0:19:08 > 0:19:09The adder.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12Surviving in the protected confines of Greenham Common,
0:19:12 > 0:19:14Britain's most venomous creature
0:19:14 > 0:19:16is disappearing from the rest of the country.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22Adders only breed every two or three years,
0:19:22 > 0:19:26and, unlike most reptiles, they give birth to live young,
0:19:26 > 0:19:28which go straight into hibernation
0:19:28 > 0:19:31and don't feed until they are over a year old.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35Like all boys, I was obsessed with snakes.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37There's something mechanical about them.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41Every scale fits together so beautifully.
0:19:41 > 0:19:43So, one day the inevitable happens.
0:19:43 > 0:19:45I had to touch one, and I got bitten.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47Now, here's the thing.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51Adder bites aren't as dangerous as they're cracked up to be.
0:19:51 > 0:19:54In fact, although their venom can be powerful enough to kill a human,
0:19:54 > 0:19:57you're more likely to die from a lightning strike
0:19:57 > 0:19:59or a stray golf ball.
0:19:59 > 0:20:00Sure, it hurt a lot.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02I was a bit worried at the time,
0:20:02 > 0:20:05but the point is, I'm still here to tell the tale.
0:20:06 > 0:20:10After the Americans left Greenham Common, it became a nature reserve -
0:20:10 > 0:20:13which was good news for the resident adders.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17This mixture of ancient woodland, woodland edge
0:20:17 > 0:20:21and heathland is perfect for adders and the population
0:20:21 > 0:20:24here is estimated to be in the hundreds.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32With adders declining in the rest of the country,
0:20:32 > 0:20:34the Greenham Common Trust is working
0:20:34 > 0:20:37to keep their population here healthy.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42Faye Willman is as obsessed by snakes as I am.
0:20:42 > 0:20:43She has 30 of them at home.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48She's devoted her time to help at Greenham Common,
0:20:48 > 0:20:52building up the first genetic database of adders across Britain.
0:20:53 > 0:20:57What does this genetic information really tell us about the adder?
0:20:57 > 0:21:01How structured their populations are, and in what way.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04We can infer measurements about inbreeding and outbreeding.
0:21:04 > 0:21:08We should an idea of how isolated or not they might be,
0:21:08 > 0:21:12make more educated decisions about how we manage them.
0:21:12 > 0:21:13We've got one here.
0:21:13 > 0:21:16How do you get that genetic information for each snake?
0:21:16 > 0:21:18So, we're going to take a cloacal swab.
0:21:18 > 0:21:22Right, so we've got to try and get his head in there...
0:21:22 > 0:21:24- Look at that!- Yeah, lovely! - An obliging male.
0:21:24 > 0:21:25SHE LAUGHS
0:21:25 > 0:21:28- I'm going to ask you to grab that swab...- OK.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31'The adder has one multi-purpose opening
0:21:31 > 0:21:33'for all of its bodily functions,
0:21:33 > 0:21:38'from which DNA can be extracted quickly and painlessly.'
0:21:38 > 0:21:40- And that is it.- So, he's done his bit for adder-kind.
0:21:40 > 0:21:44- Yeah.- And he'll just go back exactly where you got him from.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48In there... And then we'll pop him back exactly where we found him.
0:21:49 > 0:21:53It's great to see healthy adders on Greenham Common,
0:21:53 > 0:21:55but that alone can't save them.
0:21:56 > 0:21:58Because the rest of the UK's colonies
0:21:58 > 0:22:00are becoming more and more fragmented,
0:22:00 > 0:22:02genetic diversity will drop
0:22:02 > 0:22:05and inbreeding could eventually wipe them out.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10Their populations are becoming increasingly separated,
0:22:10 > 0:22:13isolated from one another, and divided up by our roads
0:22:13 > 0:22:15and building projects.
0:22:15 > 0:22:19And if you do get a brave individual that wants to make a break for it,
0:22:19 > 0:22:21the chances are he'll end up as roadkill.
0:22:23 > 0:22:27Nigel Hand is a conservationist turned adder-detective.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32He's on a mission to find out how adders move across the Malvern Hills
0:22:32 > 0:22:36using the latest radio-tracking technology.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40Adders are declining throughout their range, they're in big trouble.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43- Is the same the case here? - Oh, yes. It's definitely so.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46Over the years we've seen a decline in numbers.
0:22:46 > 0:22:49Even on a site like this, that looks really rather splendid for adders?
0:22:49 > 0:22:50Well, just walking across here, Nick,
0:22:50 > 0:22:54- you've got this wide open path, that's an obstacle for them.- Right.
0:22:54 > 0:22:55And if you go into the wider countryside,
0:22:55 > 0:22:59they've got fragmented fields, you know, sort of arable fields
0:22:59 > 0:23:02and very grey, short grassland which they can't cross.
0:23:02 > 0:23:03In the past there would have been
0:23:03 > 0:23:06what they call satellite populations, meta-populations,
0:23:06 > 0:23:09so they would have linked up the healthier genes of those animals.
0:23:09 > 0:23:11But now they're all concentrated in one area, and
0:23:11 > 0:23:14- if something catastrophic happens there, they're all lost.- Yeah.
0:23:14 > 0:23:18'Nigel's taking me to one of his adder hotspots
0:23:18 > 0:23:21'so that we can catch one and tag it with a transmitter.'
0:23:29 > 0:23:31- Right at the back. - You're kidding me.- No.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34- Very calm, the way you introduced that to conversation.- Yeah.
0:23:34 > 0:23:35Up there, look, look, look.
0:23:35 > 0:23:37Look at that.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39This is what I love about adders,
0:23:39 > 0:23:43if you want an animal that is so matched to its environment,
0:23:43 > 0:23:45you don't get much better.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49It looks like the bracken. Any bit of this bracken kind of...
0:23:50 > 0:23:51..mirrors the patterns,
0:23:51 > 0:23:54or the adder mirrors the patterns of its environment.
0:23:54 > 0:23:58And this nice, crisp bed of bracken is warming up,
0:23:58 > 0:24:01it's picking up those tiny little bits of heat from the sun,
0:24:01 > 0:24:04and this is what the adder is making the most of.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07If you find an adder, don't pick it up.
0:24:07 > 0:24:09Leave that to the experts.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12Look at that. Now you're looking at the face of the adder.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15It's the only one of our snakes that has that catlike eye.
0:24:15 > 0:24:19As very few people get close enough to see these particular details.
0:24:19 > 0:24:21And his permanent frown, which is
0:24:21 > 0:24:23created by a ridge of scales over the eye.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26This is the animal we are all so fearful of.
0:24:27 > 0:24:31And all he wants to do is get away from me.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33'Now, we can't tag this male,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35'because it will soon be shedding its skin,
0:24:35 > 0:24:38'as it's just come out of hibernation.
0:24:38 > 0:24:43'But a few metres away we're lucky enough to find a female we can tag.'
0:24:43 > 0:24:45Oh, that's 49, at least.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48That's a good-sized breeding animal, isn't it?
0:24:48 > 0:24:52'This doesn't do the snake any harm, so while I carefully hold it,
0:24:52 > 0:24:54'Nigel can attach a transmitter.'
0:24:56 > 0:24:58So, what is this tag going to be doing?
0:24:58 > 0:25:01It's going to be giving a signal, Nick, on a regular basis.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04We'll be up here every two days or so,
0:25:04 > 0:25:06just tracking the movements and GPS-monitoring where the
0:25:06 > 0:25:10snake's positions are at every time we're finding the snake.
0:25:10 > 0:25:13We just see that tiny little window into their world,
0:25:13 > 0:25:16and it gives us insight, I think that's really important.
0:25:16 > 0:25:19Insight into how this animal lives, how it moves about.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22And that is the whole point, because without that information,
0:25:22 > 0:25:25you can't even begin to understand it and look after it.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30There she goes. One lithe lovely.
0:25:30 > 0:25:33Ready to divulge her secrets to the scientific community.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37If you are lucky enough to come across an adder,
0:25:37 > 0:25:40report it to your local wildlife trust,
0:25:40 > 0:25:43and ask if you can get involved as a volunteer.
0:25:43 > 0:25:47Now, hopefully, by now, you're beginning to, I guess,
0:25:47 > 0:25:51understand why I get so excited by adders.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55It's that same feeling I've got ever since I first saw one as a small boy.
0:25:55 > 0:25:57I guess what's really sad for me,
0:25:57 > 0:25:59what's really poignant about this animal,
0:25:59 > 0:26:01is that we are in real risk of losing them.
0:26:01 > 0:26:03Day by day they get rarer and rarer,
0:26:03 > 0:26:08and it's thanks to the dedication of some pretty committed individuals
0:26:08 > 0:26:13that this beautiful creature has any hope in our future at all.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22What I love about our woodland wildlife
0:26:22 > 0:26:25is it always has the capacity to surprise.
0:26:29 > 0:26:34I want to show you a world we often ignore. Nature's secret language.
0:26:37 > 0:26:43It is five o'clock in the morning on a hopefully bright but chilly day.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45And I'm about to experience
0:26:45 > 0:26:48one of the greatest free sound shows on Earth.
0:26:48 > 0:26:50The dawn chorus.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52BIRDSONG
0:26:54 > 0:26:57The dawn chorus is a natural symphony,
0:26:57 > 0:27:01a wall of sound created by birds as they do battle
0:27:01 > 0:27:05to defend their territory, find a mate and start a family.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12- Can I listen to your headphones, Gaz?- Yeah, course you can.
0:27:12 > 0:27:13What are you hearing, then?
0:27:13 > 0:27:17'I'm joining our soundman and keen birder Gary Moore
0:27:17 > 0:27:20'to try to decode the mystery of this daily ritual.'
0:27:20 > 0:27:22- Go on, have a go.- How does it work?
0:27:22 > 0:27:25Well, basically, what it does, it just gathers all the sound
0:27:25 > 0:27:27and reflects it into the centre,
0:27:27 > 0:27:28where there's a microphone, in the centre.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31- It's like a giant...- Giant ear. - ..giant ear, yeah.- Yeah!- Basically.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34- WOOD PIGEON COOS - That's amazing.- Any bird you want.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36- That's a wood pigeon there, as you can hear.- Yeah, yeah.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39- Wow.- Yeah. Chirr of, I think, a great tit there, as well.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44All birds call, but it's really only males that sing,
0:27:44 > 0:27:48and what the male's saying is, you know, they've got territory,
0:27:48 > 0:27:51so they're advertising to the other males to stay away,
0:27:51 > 0:27:53and they want the females to come to them, basically.
0:27:53 > 0:27:56- There you go, I'll give you that one back.- Thank you.
0:27:58 > 0:28:00So, it sounds gorgeous, but it's kind of sex and violence,
0:28:00 > 0:28:02- isn't it, really? - Absolutely, yeah. Yeah.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07For me, it's a symbol of spring. It's regeneration, it's growth.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10You know, it's something that's primeval, really.
0:28:12 > 0:28:14And how often do we just sit and listen, nowadays?
0:28:14 > 0:28:16I know the therapeutic effects of birdsong.
0:28:16 > 0:28:18I think it should be prescribed by the NHS.
0:28:18 > 0:28:20- SHE LAUGHS - Because there's been experiments
0:28:20 > 0:28:24carried out in hospitals where they've played children birdsong
0:28:24 > 0:28:25before they go into an operation,
0:28:25 > 0:28:27and it's physically lowered the heart rate
0:28:27 > 0:28:29- and made them more relaxed.- Wow.
0:28:29 > 0:28:30So we know that, you know,
0:28:30 > 0:28:33it definitely has a soothing effect on people.
0:28:33 > 0:28:35And if you get a bit of birdsong in before you get to work,
0:28:35 > 0:28:37- the whole day will be much, much better.- Wow.
0:28:37 > 0:28:40- You must be a very calm man, then, Gaz.- Well, it's a bit like...
0:28:40 > 0:28:43It's a bit like audio yoga, basically.
0:28:43 > 0:28:44Brilliant!
0:28:52 > 0:28:56This natural soap opera is played out every morning,
0:28:56 > 0:28:59and it's something we can all easily experience.
0:28:59 > 0:29:01You just need to get up early enough.
0:29:03 > 0:29:05If we take the time to listen,
0:29:05 > 0:29:08we gain an insight into the lives of the creatures
0:29:08 > 0:29:12that live all around us, and which all too often we take for granted.
0:29:12 > 0:29:15For birds, and all our woodland wildlife,
0:29:15 > 0:29:20this is nature's answer to a city, and a tree is a single tower block.
0:29:20 > 0:29:22If you look up there, is where birds nest
0:29:22 > 0:29:25and roost just as we do in our apartments.
0:29:25 > 0:29:28It gives them shelter, it's where they eat, just as we have our shops.
0:29:28 > 0:29:29And, incredibly,
0:29:29 > 0:29:35a single tree can host 250 different species of plants and animals.
0:29:35 > 0:29:38But with all the problems we have in our woodlands,
0:29:38 > 0:29:41they face a housing shortage, and we need to do everything
0:29:41 > 0:29:44we can to provide them with places to live.
0:29:44 > 0:29:46Our wildlife gardening man, Mike Dilger,
0:29:46 > 0:29:48has been with a group of schoolchildren
0:29:48 > 0:29:49who are doing just that.
0:29:54 > 0:29:58One place that's transformed its grounds into a wildlife haven
0:29:58 > 0:30:01is Warren Park Primary School in Hampshire.
0:30:03 > 0:30:07This school used to be situated in seven acres of playing field,
0:30:07 > 0:30:09and whilst they've kept the football pitch,
0:30:09 > 0:30:14the rest has been converted into an amazing woodland.
0:30:14 > 0:30:17And believe me, if one tree represents a tower block,
0:30:17 > 0:30:20then a whole forest is a bustling city.
0:30:21 > 0:30:24Every year, the school is extending this wooden metropolis
0:30:24 > 0:30:26with native trees.
0:30:28 > 0:30:29And sure enough,
0:30:29 > 0:30:32the animals are moving in and taking up residence.
0:30:33 > 0:30:36- We have actually had lizards here before.- Oh, really?
0:30:36 > 0:30:41- We've had a fox and, um...a snake that came over.- A snake?
0:30:41 > 0:30:43- An adder.- An adder.- Adder?!
0:30:47 > 0:30:50You can create places for birds to nest in your garden
0:30:50 > 0:30:54with plants like hawthorn, blackthorn and holly.
0:30:54 > 0:30:58And an even quicker way to provide a home is to put up a bird-box.
0:31:00 > 0:31:02Hey! Look at these!
0:31:02 > 0:31:04Fantastic.
0:31:04 > 0:31:08Any idea what kind of birds might be in those boxes?
0:31:08 > 0:31:11Um, blue tits, great tits, wrens...
0:31:11 > 0:31:13There's quite a few birds that might be able to go in there.
0:31:13 > 0:31:16Very good - particularly blue tits and great tits.
0:31:16 > 0:31:19And if you look at the top there, the holes have been widened.
0:31:19 > 0:31:21That means a greater spotted woodpecker
0:31:21 > 0:31:23has been trying to make a home in there.
0:31:23 > 0:31:26- I have seen a woodpecker, actually. - What colour was that woodpecker?
0:31:26 > 0:31:27It kind of had a red head.
0:31:27 > 0:31:30That's probably a young greater spotted woodpecker,
0:31:30 > 0:31:33and that's the one that's going "drrrrr",
0:31:33 > 0:31:35drumming into the trees, this time of year.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42Wildlife will very quickly find a new home, and for kids,
0:31:42 > 0:31:46having animals living close by is a fantastic learning experience.
0:31:47 > 0:31:50Working with the children in this outdoor classroom
0:31:50 > 0:31:51is teacher Les Terry.
0:31:53 > 0:31:55It's to get that initial love of nature,
0:31:55 > 0:31:57a love of being outside,
0:31:57 > 0:31:59not playing on the computer games day in, day out.
0:31:59 > 0:32:02They're using their senses all the time and it sharpens them.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06There's only so much we can learn inside a classroom.
0:32:06 > 0:32:09But outside the classroom, we can learn a whole lot more.
0:32:10 > 0:32:14This woodland also provides homes for nocturnal wildlife,
0:32:14 > 0:32:17and I want to try and capture what comes out at night.
0:32:18 > 0:32:19That'll do...
0:32:20 > 0:32:22We set up motion-sensitive camera traps
0:32:22 > 0:32:26to film which animals are active once the kids have gone home.
0:32:27 > 0:32:31We managed to film a very, very rare mammal.
0:32:31 > 0:32:32Do you want to see it?
0:32:32 > 0:32:33Can we have the first clip, Les?
0:32:36 > 0:32:38LAUGHTER
0:32:38 > 0:32:41- Who's that? CHILDREN:- Mr Terry!
0:32:41 > 0:32:43Lovely. Shall we see what else we've got?
0:32:43 > 0:32:45Shout out when you know what this animal is.
0:32:46 > 0:32:48- CHILDREN:- Squirrel!
0:32:48 > 0:32:51It's a squirrel. What's this?
0:32:51 > 0:32:54- CHILDREN:- A wolf! - It's like a wolf.
0:32:54 > 0:32:57- CHILDREN:- Fox. - A fox. Absolutely.
0:32:57 > 0:33:00It's a fox that's eating out in your woodland.
0:33:03 > 0:33:05But let's face it -
0:33:05 > 0:33:08few of us can transform half our garden into a woodland.
0:33:11 > 0:33:15Yet there is a way to massively increase vital wildlife housing,
0:33:15 > 0:33:20even in the smallest space, and that's to build a bug hotel.
0:33:20 > 0:33:22So what we've got there at the moment is an empty hotel,
0:33:22 > 0:33:25and nothing's going to really live in there, is it?
0:33:25 > 0:33:27So all this jumble of stuff,
0:33:27 > 0:33:30we're going to turn that into the furnishings for the bugs.
0:33:30 > 0:33:34Everybody ready to start doing some sawing, some chopping, some drilling?
0:33:34 > 0:33:36- CHILDREN:- Yeah! - Come on, let's do it!
0:33:41 > 0:33:44Invertebrates love small, dark spaces.
0:33:44 > 0:33:46The more you can create in your garden,
0:33:46 > 0:33:50with whatever you have to hand, the more that will move in.
0:33:50 > 0:33:54Guys, you're creating the most enormous pile of spaghetti.
0:33:54 > 0:33:56Any idea what might live in here?
0:33:56 > 0:33:58Maybe some spiders might get some eggs inside?
0:33:58 > 0:34:01- They might do their web inside as well.- Absolutely.
0:34:01 > 0:34:06This is a perfect place for a spider to produce its web inside, yes.
0:34:06 > 0:34:07Centipedes and millipedes?
0:34:07 > 0:34:10Centipedes and millipedes will love it in here.
0:34:10 > 0:34:12So you'll get lots and lots of animals.
0:34:12 > 0:34:13Keep sawing, all right?
0:34:15 > 0:34:17Invertebrates are at the bottom of the food chain,
0:34:17 > 0:34:20so more bugs will bring in the bigger creatures.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23But they're also the maintenance crew for the garden plants -
0:34:23 > 0:34:26solitary bees, for example, are brilliant pollinators.
0:34:27 > 0:34:31Bamboo is the most amazing stuff, because it's hollow inside
0:34:31 > 0:34:34and that's where the creatures are going to live,
0:34:34 > 0:34:37particularly mason bees, which are amazing creatures.
0:34:37 > 0:34:39They like it really sunny,
0:34:39 > 0:34:42so all these will be facing out, south-facing,
0:34:42 > 0:34:46so the whole of the front of the bug hotel gets loads of sun
0:34:46 > 0:34:50and that means the larvae inside will be all nice and warm and mature.
0:34:50 > 0:34:54In spring, they'll pop out, one after the next.
0:34:54 > 0:34:58In it goes. One...two...
0:34:59 > 0:35:00Push, push, push!
0:35:02 > 0:35:03Brilliant.
0:35:04 > 0:35:07If you don't have bamboo to hand, drilling holes in wood
0:35:07 > 0:35:10also makes a perfect home for those solitary bees.
0:35:18 > 0:35:21And rolled-up cardboard becomes a home for lacewings,
0:35:21 > 0:35:24that love to eat the aphids attacking your garden plants.
0:35:24 > 0:35:26Do you know what? If I was a lacewing,
0:35:26 > 0:35:29that would be the perfect home for me.
0:35:29 > 0:35:31Ten out of ten, well done.
0:35:32 > 0:35:37Keep the insect houses dry with any plastic tubes or piping.
0:35:37 > 0:35:42Our grand four-storey bug hotel is really taking shape.
0:35:42 > 0:35:43I found a spider.
0:35:43 > 0:35:46LAUGHING You have indeed!
0:35:46 > 0:35:47You can see, on his head end,
0:35:47 > 0:35:50he's got two little tiny things that we call pedipalps,
0:35:50 > 0:35:54and they look like two little legs, like boxing gloves, on the end,
0:35:54 > 0:35:57and that means if they've got these little boxing gloves, he's a male.
0:35:57 > 0:36:00You've got a little, tiny male spider.
0:36:00 > 0:36:04And I think we should save this for the first resident in our bug hotel
0:36:04 > 0:36:06- and release it when it's finished - what do you say?- Yeah.
0:36:09 > 0:36:10Rotting wood for the beetles
0:36:10 > 0:36:13is one of the most important ingredients in our hotel.
0:36:13 > 0:36:16Brilliant - look at that for a big twig!
0:36:16 > 0:36:18If you don't have space for such high-rise accommodation
0:36:18 > 0:36:23in your garden, a pile of leaves and rotting branches in a dark corner
0:36:23 > 0:36:24will work just as well.
0:36:24 > 0:36:26Keep going, guys. Keep filling up.
0:36:28 > 0:36:31Increasing the amount of housing for wildlife really can be done
0:36:31 > 0:36:33in any outdoor space.
0:36:33 > 0:36:36Right - we need one more thing.
0:36:36 > 0:36:39We need some turf to put on the top, because we need to make sure
0:36:39 > 0:36:42it's nice and dry inside for all the creepy crawlies.
0:36:45 > 0:36:48There we go - have you got that? Good...
0:36:48 > 0:36:50Right then, go on, on you go.
0:36:50 > 0:36:52Roll it out. That looks brilliant.
0:36:54 > 0:36:57That is the most amazing bug hotel I've ever seen -
0:36:57 > 0:37:01that's going to be a home for thousands of woodlice,
0:37:01 > 0:37:03bumblebees and beetles...
0:37:03 > 0:37:06- And worms! And slugs! - And worms!
0:37:06 > 0:37:08- And hands!- And dirty hands.
0:37:09 > 0:37:12And we're not forgetting to set free Siobhan's spider,
0:37:12 > 0:37:15our first hotel resident, who moves in straightaway.
0:37:18 > 0:37:21Is this bug hotel OK?
0:37:21 > 0:37:23Or is it good?
0:37:23 > 0:37:24Or is it brilliant?
0:37:24 > 0:37:26- CHILDREN:- Brilliant!
0:37:26 > 0:37:29THEY CHEER
0:37:29 > 0:37:30Get in there!
0:37:32 > 0:37:34If you want to make a home in your garden
0:37:34 > 0:37:36for birds, bees and beetles,
0:37:36 > 0:37:38Mike has more advice on our website,
0:37:38 > 0:37:40along with tips on how you can help bring back
0:37:40 > 0:37:42Britain's endangered creatures
0:37:42 > 0:37:46and what's happening where you live in the BBC Summer of Wildlife.
0:37:50 > 0:37:53Still to come on Britain's Big Wildlife Revival,
0:37:53 > 0:37:55Gordon Buchanan goes on a quest
0:37:55 > 0:37:59to find Britain's most elusive and endangered mammal.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02I mean, it could be that there's less than 50 left.
0:38:02 > 0:38:04And I go flying
0:38:04 > 0:38:06with one of the world's most acrobatic birds -
0:38:06 > 0:38:09one of our greatest wildlife comebacks.
0:38:09 > 0:38:12That's...amazing!
0:38:17 > 0:38:21Our woodlands have always played a central part in our lives,
0:38:21 > 0:38:24be it for food, fuel or shelter.
0:38:24 > 0:38:27And it's no different for our wildlife.
0:38:27 > 0:38:30But after decades of neglect, it's only in the last few years
0:38:30 > 0:38:34we've taken steps to protect our precious woods and forests.
0:38:35 > 0:38:39So, what is the future for our woodland and its wildlife?
0:38:39 > 0:38:42We might think the answer is just to plant trees
0:38:42 > 0:38:45or leave the landscape to revert back to woodland -
0:38:45 > 0:38:47which it does, if left to its own devices.
0:38:47 > 0:38:50But the answer's not actually that simple.
0:38:50 > 0:38:51It seems ironic,
0:38:51 > 0:38:56but planting more trees can actually do more harm than good for wildlife.
0:38:56 > 0:38:59Dense conifer plantations block natural light
0:38:59 > 0:39:03and inhibit the growth of wild flowers and native trees,
0:39:03 > 0:39:07while we can also been overly tidy in our ancient woodlands.
0:39:07 > 0:39:11If we do too much and clear up all the dead wood and fallen branches,
0:39:11 > 0:39:14with risk losing a resource like this -
0:39:14 > 0:39:20decomposers like slugs, worms and millipedes will thrive here,
0:39:20 > 0:39:25and they in turn will be fed on by centipedes, beetles, spiders,
0:39:25 > 0:39:27and then on up through the food chain.
0:39:29 > 0:39:31Finding a natural balance
0:39:31 > 0:39:35that protects both our woodland and its wild inhabitants
0:39:35 > 0:39:36is a delicate juggling act.
0:39:36 > 0:39:39The wrong decision can prove catastrophic.
0:39:39 > 0:39:41So what do we do?
0:39:42 > 0:39:46Rob Penn is a born-again woodsman with a solution.
0:39:46 > 0:39:50- Hey, Rob. How are you doing? - Ellie. Good to meet you.- You too.
0:39:50 > 0:39:54He has successfully breathed new life into an abandoned woodland
0:39:54 > 0:39:56here in Wales.
0:39:56 > 0:40:00So, what's the problem with just leaving a woodland to manage itself?
0:40:00 > 0:40:02Well, over a long period of time,
0:40:02 > 0:40:06our woodlands have got used to being managed by us
0:40:06 > 0:40:08and here, you've got a classic example
0:40:08 > 0:40:09of a piece of unmanaged woodland -
0:40:09 > 0:40:12there's hazel, oak and ash standards, and birch.
0:40:12 > 0:40:15And because it hasn't been touched for 60 years,
0:40:15 > 0:40:20it's dark and dank and in summer, the leaf canopy stitches itself up
0:40:20 > 0:40:22and there's very little light
0:40:22 > 0:40:25and very insect life, very little bird life in here.
0:40:25 > 0:40:29And that is, I think, a very poor alternative to a managed woodland,
0:40:29 > 0:40:32which you have here, which is a place which is full of light,
0:40:32 > 0:40:36full of wild flowers, insects and birds.
0:40:36 > 0:40:39You bring energy and life back to the wood.
0:40:39 > 0:40:43Managing woodland involves cutting back trees to near ground level
0:40:43 > 0:40:46to produce sunlit glades.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49Over time, new shoots emerge and the trees grow back,
0:40:49 > 0:40:51allowing the woodland to renew itself
0:40:51 > 0:40:54and create a more diverse habitat.
0:40:54 > 0:40:57It seems kind of counter-intuitive to go,
0:40:57 > 0:40:59"Woodland management means clearing it all out."
0:40:59 > 0:41:02Yeah, but that goes to the heart of British woodland management,
0:41:02 > 0:41:05it's the fact that all of our native trees coppice.
0:41:05 > 0:41:08Now, that means you cut them down and they grow again.
0:41:08 > 0:41:12And it'll carry on doing that for several centuries
0:41:12 > 0:41:14if you continue to cut it down and coppice it.
0:41:14 > 0:41:17If you just let it grow old, like that, the tree will die.
0:41:17 > 0:41:20This is coming back with sufficient vigour
0:41:20 > 0:41:22for me to feel sure that in eight years' time,
0:41:22 > 0:41:25there will be all sorts of products you can take out of this -
0:41:25 > 0:41:27beanpoles, mainly, probably some pea sticks as well.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30By using these resources, by making them a commodity,
0:41:30 > 0:41:32you actually protect them in the long term.
0:41:32 > 0:41:33I think you do.
0:41:33 > 0:41:35British woodlands would have a better chance
0:41:35 > 0:41:38if we were in closer contact with them.
0:41:38 > 0:41:40You use British charcoal in your woodland
0:41:40 > 0:41:42and you heat your home with firewood.
0:41:42 > 0:41:45I think if we start doing that, maybe the next generation
0:41:45 > 0:41:47are more in touch with our woodlands again.
0:41:47 > 0:41:48How do you feel,
0:41:48 > 0:41:51putting so much time and energy into this amazing place,
0:41:51 > 0:41:54and you won't necessarily get to reap the rewards,
0:41:54 > 0:41:55that's for generations to come?
0:41:55 > 0:41:58Yes. It's a curious one.
0:41:58 > 0:41:59You plant trees now
0:41:59 > 0:42:03and maybe someone will walk in that wood in 100 years, 150 years
0:42:03 > 0:42:06and think well of you, even though they don't know your name.
0:42:06 > 0:42:08But I think that in itself is a reward.
0:42:08 > 0:42:11There aren't many things in life which afford such an opportunity.
0:42:18 > 0:42:21What I love about Rob is that he's dedicated so much of his energy
0:42:21 > 0:42:27to regenerating this woodland, and yet the rewards come so slowly.
0:42:27 > 0:42:30But time is a luxury that many of our woodland animals
0:42:30 > 0:42:31just do not have.
0:42:31 > 0:42:34Over in the western Highlands of Scotland,
0:42:34 > 0:42:37Gordon Buchanan travelled to see one of our most endangered predators.
0:42:43 > 0:42:45In all my years as a wildlife cameraman,
0:42:45 > 0:42:48there is one animal that I have never been able to capture on film.
0:42:48 > 0:42:50In fact, I've never even seen one.
0:42:50 > 0:42:53Yet it lives practically on my doorstep,
0:42:53 > 0:42:54here in the Highlands of Scotland.
0:42:54 > 0:42:56The reason this animal is so hard to see
0:42:56 > 0:43:00is because it is on the very brink of extinction.
0:43:00 > 0:43:03This isn't just one of the rarest mammals in Scotland -
0:43:03 > 0:43:07this is one of the most endangered mammals in the entire world.
0:43:10 > 0:43:13The Scottish wildcat.
0:43:13 > 0:43:15It's half as big again as a domestic cat,
0:43:15 > 0:43:18and sightings are incredibly rare.
0:43:20 > 0:43:23I'm exploring the western edge of Scotland,
0:43:23 > 0:43:25in search of this Highland tiger.
0:43:25 > 0:43:29It's thought there may be fewer than 50 left in the wild.
0:43:29 > 0:43:31You think about how this land would've looked
0:43:31 > 0:43:33a few thousand years ago,
0:43:33 > 0:43:35it would have been entirely covered in woodland -
0:43:35 > 0:43:38there would've been bears roaming, there would've been wolves,
0:43:38 > 0:43:39there would've been lynx.
0:43:39 > 0:43:42All these big animals have fallen by the wayside, they've gone,
0:43:42 > 0:43:45because of our presence, our activity.
0:43:45 > 0:43:48And it would be the greatest shame of all
0:43:48 > 0:43:51that the one predator that did remain, the Scottish wildcat,
0:43:51 > 0:43:54if we were to let that go the same way and become extinct.
0:43:54 > 0:43:57That's what's going to happen unless we actually do something now.
0:44:00 > 0:44:03The biggest threat to the wildcat comes from their domestic cousin,
0:44:03 > 0:44:05the household moggie.
0:44:05 > 0:44:08It's thought as many as 100,000 feral cats
0:44:08 > 0:44:10are now living wild in the Highlands,
0:44:10 > 0:44:14having escaped from our homes and bred.
0:44:14 > 0:44:16The problem is that these feral cats
0:44:16 > 0:44:20are also breeding with true, pure wildcats, creating hybrids.
0:44:24 > 0:44:25I'm heading to the Cairngorms
0:44:25 > 0:44:27to take a look at some captive-bred wildcats,
0:44:27 > 0:44:29to find out what to look for.
0:44:29 > 0:44:34David Barclay is the senior keeper at the Highland Wildlife Park.
0:44:36 > 0:44:37GORDON LAUGHS
0:44:37 > 0:44:41Look at the size of him! He's a big, big boy.
0:44:41 > 0:44:44If you're looking for wildcat markings,
0:44:44 > 0:44:46what is it you're going for?
0:44:46 > 0:44:47If there's really one marking
0:44:47 > 0:44:50that we would advise people to look out for,
0:44:50 > 0:44:52if they're in an area where wildcats may live,
0:44:52 > 0:44:54it's really that big, bushy tail.
0:44:54 > 0:44:58It should be nice, big, bushy, black rings, blunt-ended,
0:44:58 > 0:45:00about four or five rings on it,
0:45:00 > 0:45:03and there is a black dorsal stripe that runs down,
0:45:03 > 0:45:06that should stop at the base of the tail.
0:45:06 > 0:45:08You can see quite a definite black stripe there,
0:45:08 > 0:45:11and on an ideal-looking wildcat,
0:45:11 > 0:45:16we would expect that just to end very bluntly at the top of the tail.
0:45:16 > 0:45:19But what we're unsure of is the degree of hybridisation.
0:45:19 > 0:45:21Could he still be a pure wildcat
0:45:21 > 0:45:25and have that dorsal stripe that continues on to the tail?
0:45:25 > 0:45:28Some people say no, some people say it may not be an issue,
0:45:28 > 0:45:32but what is important is that we find out a lot more information
0:45:32 > 0:45:34about the degree of hybridisation.
0:45:34 > 0:45:38He's looking at us very indignantly, questioning his authenticity.
0:45:38 > 0:45:42If we care about protecting the Scottish wildcat in the wild,
0:45:42 > 0:45:44it has to be the real McCoy.
0:45:44 > 0:45:48I don't believe you can let every single cat
0:45:48 > 0:45:51that's living in the wild exist, because over time,
0:45:51 > 0:45:55if they continue to interbreed with the wild population,
0:45:55 > 0:45:58the pure population, in a couple of generations,
0:45:58 > 0:46:03the pure wildcat is completely gone, and that's why we have to act now.
0:46:04 > 0:46:08I'm here to help a pioneering new wildcat project.
0:46:08 > 0:46:12It's led by Paul O' Donoghue, who hopes to catch a wildcat
0:46:12 > 0:46:15and genetically test it for the very first time.
0:46:17 > 0:46:20Our first job is to search the woodland for signs.
0:46:20 > 0:46:24See if you can see any fur samples or scat.
0:46:24 > 0:46:28- Oh, here we go. That's a cat hair. - Yeah.
0:46:28 > 0:46:30- Is it?- Let's see.
0:46:30 > 0:46:31Certainly looks like it.
0:46:31 > 0:46:35It's paler at the bottom and it's got the brown tip.
0:46:35 > 0:46:38Yeah, I love that - you just start looking for these signs
0:46:38 > 0:46:39when you come to a likely place.
0:46:39 > 0:46:40You walk through the forest,
0:46:40 > 0:46:43you think, "How on earth are we going to find these animals
0:46:43 > 0:46:44"or find any signs of them?"
0:46:44 > 0:46:48The signs are there, you just have to look in detail.
0:46:48 > 0:46:51Maybe we should think about setting up a camera trap.
0:46:51 > 0:46:52Yeah, that'd be great.
0:46:52 > 0:46:55- Maybe even baiting up this area a little bit.- Yeah.
0:46:59 > 0:47:02I'm installing a remote camera trap to see if we can get a sighting.
0:47:02 > 0:47:06This is one of many set up across the Highlands.
0:47:06 > 0:47:09Now, we'll see - within the next six to eight weeks,
0:47:09 > 0:47:13a cat will come and sit on this exact spot.
0:47:13 > 0:47:16And if the batteries hold out, we'll capture it on camera.
0:47:16 > 0:47:18OK.
0:47:18 > 0:47:20I think that's good to go.
0:47:21 > 0:47:22Best of luck.
0:47:24 > 0:47:25Your project is about finding out
0:47:25 > 0:47:29if there are still purebred wildcats living in Scotland.
0:47:29 > 0:47:31This is the ultimate aim of the project -
0:47:31 > 0:47:35to prove beyond doubt there are genetically pure Scottish wildcats.
0:47:35 > 0:47:36I think once we can show that,
0:47:36 > 0:47:39that will greatly move forward wildcat conservation.
0:47:39 > 0:47:41- At the moment, there's a doubt. - Yeah.
0:47:41 > 0:47:43The urgency of the situation can't really be stressed enough.
0:47:43 > 0:47:47I mean, it could be that there's less than 50 left.
0:47:47 > 0:47:51And how can we in the United Kingdom go to another country and say,
0:47:51 > 0:47:55"You must protect your wild animals, save the tiger, the rhino,
0:47:55 > 0:47:56"the elephant"?
0:47:56 > 0:47:58I mean, it's almost laughable.
0:47:58 > 0:48:02Our last major carnivore is on the brink of extinction.
0:48:02 > 0:48:04It's far more endangered than the Siberian tiger.
0:48:06 > 0:48:09The next day, I return to check my camera trap.
0:48:10 > 0:48:11You never know...
0:48:16 > 0:48:17No.
0:48:18 > 0:48:22It's not a cat. It looks like a cat, but it's a pine marten.
0:48:23 > 0:48:25A pine marten, just there.
0:48:26 > 0:48:29You can hear how windy it was last night.
0:48:29 > 0:48:32An area like this is fantastic for a cat,
0:48:32 > 0:48:36but generally, where's good for a cat is also good for pine martens.
0:48:39 > 0:48:42Local sightings also help to build up the picture.
0:48:42 > 0:48:43- Morning!- Morning.
0:48:43 > 0:48:45There was a kerfuffle outside the lounge window there,
0:48:45 > 0:48:49round on the little bit of rockery, and there was this monster of...
0:48:51 > 0:48:54Well, I thought it was a wildcat, I'm convinced it was,
0:48:54 > 0:48:56by its markings, its tail.
0:48:56 > 0:48:59It used to frequent the garden and it pounced on the cat.
0:48:59 > 0:49:04- Gosh.- That was a hefty vet's bill.
0:49:04 > 0:49:10So how much bigger than your domestic cat was this wildcat?
0:49:10 > 0:49:13Easily half as big again. It was a big cat.
0:49:13 > 0:49:16But what a privilege, if we have. That's the way I look at it.
0:49:16 > 0:49:17OK, you carry on...
0:49:17 > 0:49:20Following this sighting and others in the area,
0:49:20 > 0:49:23Paul decides to set up cage traps.
0:49:24 > 0:49:28There's absolutely no way an animal would go into a cage like this,
0:49:28 > 0:49:30a trap, without a little enticement.
0:49:30 > 0:49:33So what we want to do is tie this on here
0:49:33 > 0:49:37and basically make this trap disappear.
0:49:37 > 0:49:40Trapping the animals is the only way to take the blood samples
0:49:40 > 0:49:44needed to genetically identify a pure wildcat.
0:49:48 > 0:49:50We'll leave it locked up at the moment.
0:49:50 > 0:49:53Yeah, we'll come back tonight, we'll set that.
0:49:53 > 0:49:56We'll check it first thing in the morning, see what we get.
0:49:56 > 0:49:57Looking good.
0:49:59 > 0:50:03The hope is that by finding a pure wildcat in the western Highlands,
0:50:03 > 0:50:07they can be isolated and protected from cross-breeding in the future.
0:50:09 > 0:50:12The next morning, it's time to check the traps.
0:50:15 > 0:50:17We check all seven of them.
0:50:19 > 0:50:21But no joy yet.
0:50:21 > 0:50:22They're automatically suspicious.
0:50:22 > 0:50:26- Even a cat knows there's no such thing as a free meal.- Exactly.
0:50:28 > 0:50:30- Is that fur, or...?- Yeah.
0:50:30 > 0:50:31It's something, innit?
0:50:34 > 0:50:36This is the trap that we set out yesterday,
0:50:36 > 0:50:39but you see the door's still up.
0:50:39 > 0:50:41The bait's still at the back.
0:50:43 > 0:50:46I'd say the figures of maybe 50 wildcats remaining,
0:50:46 > 0:50:47they're probably true.
0:50:47 > 0:50:50And that's why you can't stress enough the urgency.
0:50:50 > 0:50:53It's getting people to realise that it's direct action now
0:50:53 > 0:50:55that will save the wildcat.
0:50:55 > 0:50:58But without any doubt, if nothing is done,
0:50:58 > 0:51:00the wildcat is doomed.
0:51:00 > 0:51:03100%, the wildcat will be extinct in the next two or three years
0:51:03 > 0:51:04if nothing's done.
0:51:04 > 0:51:06There's no argument about that.
0:51:07 > 0:51:10This is the last trap of the morning, there's no wildcat here.
0:51:10 > 0:51:14The reason these animals are so hard to trap, so hard to film,
0:51:14 > 0:51:18so hard to see, is because there's possibly fewer than 50 of them
0:51:18 > 0:51:19left in Scotland.
0:51:20 > 0:51:22There's still a long way to go,
0:51:22 > 0:51:25but hopefully, the setting up of a breeding programme
0:51:25 > 0:51:27in a protected area such as this
0:51:27 > 0:51:31will mean that the wildcat can thrive once again
0:51:31 > 0:51:32in its remote Highland home.
0:51:37 > 0:51:41There is a long journey ahead to help protect the wildcat,
0:51:41 > 0:51:45but history has shown us that we can bring endangered species
0:51:45 > 0:51:46back from the brink.
0:51:46 > 0:51:49To prove it, I've come to mid-Wales
0:51:49 > 0:51:52to witness one of the most triumphant
0:51:52 > 0:51:55conservation achievements ever.
0:51:55 > 0:51:57Oh!
0:51:57 > 0:52:00The amount of meat I'm shovelling just goes to show
0:52:00 > 0:52:02how successful this has been.
0:52:07 > 0:52:09The red kite.
0:52:09 > 0:52:11Wow...wow, look at this!
0:52:13 > 0:52:16With a wingspan of almost two metres,
0:52:16 > 0:52:20the red kite is one of our most successful birds of prey.
0:52:22 > 0:52:23Look at that!
0:52:23 > 0:52:25SHE LAUGHS
0:52:26 > 0:52:28But just a century ago,
0:52:28 > 0:52:32this magnificent bird was virtually lost from Britain.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36But to see this many red kites,
0:52:36 > 0:52:39just wheeling and interacting above your head...
0:52:39 > 0:52:40It's close to mind-blowing.
0:52:47 > 0:52:51Birder and historian Rob Lambert is passionate about red kites
0:52:51 > 0:52:56and has followed their extraordinary story for many years.
0:52:56 > 0:52:57I was a young birder in Bolton
0:52:57 > 0:53:00and I begged my dad to drive me over here to central Wales.
0:53:00 > 0:53:02And I remember we stood for hours and hours,
0:53:02 > 0:53:04waiting to see a red kite.
0:53:04 > 0:53:07And finally, we saw one, this incredible bird.
0:53:07 > 0:53:10And I remember vividly - a moment that lives with me for ever -
0:53:10 > 0:53:14Dad slapped me on the back and said, "Red kite, son - what a bird!"
0:53:14 > 0:53:17That's how it goes down in the records.
0:53:17 > 0:53:20Why have we had such a disastrous history with the red kite?
0:53:20 > 0:53:23The story in medieval London was one of usefulness -
0:53:23 > 0:53:25the kites were of value to us.
0:53:25 > 0:53:28They cleaned up our refuse, they cleaned up the pavements -
0:53:28 > 0:53:29they ate our poo.
0:53:29 > 0:53:31- Lovely(!) - They were municipal dustmen.
0:53:31 > 0:53:35Then in rural Britain, they became more and more of a pest.
0:53:35 > 0:53:38For the next 400 years, we persecuted the kite ruthlessly.
0:53:38 > 0:53:40We developed better ways to shoot them,
0:53:40 > 0:53:41better ways to trap them,
0:53:41 > 0:53:44and that plunged them into a catastrophic situation
0:53:44 > 0:53:47at the end of the 19th century and early 20th century,
0:53:47 > 0:53:49where there were maybe ten kites left
0:53:49 > 0:53:51in these remote valleys of Wales.
0:53:54 > 0:53:56The red kite just managed to hang on,
0:53:56 > 0:53:58but even by the late-20th century,
0:53:58 > 0:54:02the species was still confined to this part of Wales,
0:54:02 > 0:54:06so a reintroduction programme was begun to bring the bird back
0:54:06 > 0:54:07to England and Scotland.
0:54:11 > 0:54:14Within a few years, numbers rocketed,
0:54:14 > 0:54:18and the red kite went from being one of Britain's rarest birds
0:54:18 > 0:54:21to a common sight for more and more people.
0:54:21 > 0:54:23Wales can no longer claim, if you like,
0:54:23 > 0:54:24that this is their national bird.
0:54:25 > 0:54:27They're now not just a woodland bird -
0:54:27 > 0:54:30we're seeing them on motorways and in gardens.
0:54:30 > 0:54:32I love the fact that in the Home Counties,
0:54:32 > 0:54:34people walk into their gardens
0:54:34 > 0:54:36with a peanut feeder in one hand for the blue tits
0:54:36 > 0:54:39and a cooked chicken in the other hand to put out for the red kites.
0:54:39 > 0:54:43I think all those of us who come here to central Wales,
0:54:43 > 0:54:47where once there were four or five red kites,
0:54:47 > 0:54:49and there are now 400 kites in the air,
0:54:49 > 0:54:51owe an enormous debt of gratitude
0:54:51 > 0:54:54to those early pioneers who protected this bird.
0:54:54 > 0:54:57And really, if you were to think of a conservation success story
0:54:57 > 0:55:01in 20th century Britain, the red kite would be that bird.
0:55:02 > 0:55:03Thanks to the efforts
0:55:03 > 0:55:06of those pioneering conservationists,
0:55:06 > 0:55:10today, the UK has around 2,000 breeding pairs of kites -
0:55:10 > 0:55:14close to one-tenth of the whole world population.
0:55:14 > 0:55:16This is Mr Black.
0:55:16 > 0:55:17He's a captive-bred red kite,
0:55:17 > 0:55:19so he's happy enough to sit in my hand
0:55:19 > 0:55:22and give me this beautiful close-up look.
0:55:22 > 0:55:24It's a really lovely opportunity to showboat
0:55:24 > 0:55:26about what a gorgeous bird it is
0:55:26 > 0:55:29and how tragic it would've been had we lost them.
0:55:29 > 0:55:32They're quite big, as birds of prey go,
0:55:32 > 0:55:33but in spite of its size,
0:55:33 > 0:55:36they don't necessarily catch large prey items,
0:55:36 > 0:55:40and that's because of these weapons down here, these talons.
0:55:40 > 0:55:43They're not the biggest, and neither is that bill,
0:55:43 > 0:55:46so they tend to be more scavengers in the countryside,
0:55:46 > 0:55:50although they can catch smaller birds and smaller mammals.
0:55:50 > 0:55:51What a beauty.
0:55:54 > 0:55:56This is an incredible success story,
0:55:56 > 0:56:00and one that could also work with other endangered species.
0:56:00 > 0:56:05So where better to end my woodland journey than in the sky,
0:56:05 > 0:56:09up close and personal with this majestic creature
0:56:09 > 0:56:11for a bird's-eye view
0:56:11 > 0:56:13of the red kite in all its glory.
0:56:13 > 0:56:16Wa-ha-ha!
0:56:16 > 0:56:19SHE LAUGHS
0:56:19 > 0:56:21Oh, my word!
0:56:21 > 0:56:25That's...amazing!
0:56:32 > 0:56:36They're right underneath us! Oh, wow!
0:56:36 > 0:56:39A topside view of a red kite.
0:56:39 > 0:56:41Oh, on that side!
0:56:41 > 0:56:43Yeah!
0:56:48 > 0:56:50Oh-ho-ho! Woo-hoo!
0:56:52 > 0:56:55Red kites have got 2½ times the visual acuity of humans,
0:56:55 > 0:56:57which doesn't sound like a lot,
0:56:57 > 0:57:00but that's because humans have got really good vision.
0:57:00 > 0:57:03It's actually 140 times better than a rat,
0:57:03 > 0:57:06which is very useful if you're a red kite
0:57:06 > 0:57:07and you want to eat a rat.
0:57:13 > 0:57:15Wow. This is amazing.
0:57:18 > 0:57:20The wild creatures that share our space
0:57:20 > 0:57:23help us to feel connected to the world,
0:57:23 > 0:57:27reminding us of our place in the natural order.
0:57:28 > 0:57:30What a landscape.
0:57:32 > 0:57:35Britain has a wonderful natural legacy
0:57:35 > 0:57:38and we should strive to protect it.
0:57:40 > 0:57:43We all live near places as beautiful as this.
0:57:45 > 0:57:48And the important part of conserving them is using them,
0:57:48 > 0:57:50falling in love with them, being part of them,
0:57:50 > 0:57:54to start reaping the rewards of being out in the natural world.
0:58:03 > 0:58:06Next time on Britain's Big Wildlife Revival,
0:58:06 > 0:58:08we take a journey to the British coastline,
0:58:08 > 0:58:11where some of our best-loved animals are under threat.
0:58:11 > 0:58:16These birds still face dangers, and it makes my blood boil.
0:58:16 > 0:58:18Mike Dilger shows us how creating shelter
0:58:18 > 0:58:21brings wildlife flocking to your garden.
0:58:21 > 0:58:22CHEERING
0:58:22 > 0:58:24And I'm up in Northumberland
0:58:24 > 0:58:27for some very close encounters with wildlife.
0:58:27 > 0:58:29Wow! Absolutely incredible.
0:58:53 > 0:58:56Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd