0:00:03 > 0:00:07Britain. The history and the culture.
0:00:09 > 0:00:13Born of a landscape that we know and love.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15But hang on a minute...
0:00:15 > 0:00:18That's just how we see Britain.
0:00:18 > 0:00:19We humans are in a minority.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22We share our land and our shores here
0:00:22 > 0:00:25with hundreds of thousands of other species of animal,
0:00:25 > 0:00:29many of which have been here a lot longer than we have.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31So what I want to know is what they think of Britain.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33What matters to them?
0:00:35 > 0:00:41And that's my mission - to see the UK through our animals' eyes.
0:00:44 > 0:00:48Where are their favourite places in these crowded islands?
0:00:51 > 0:00:52Oh!
0:00:52 > 0:00:56How do their senses affect their view of our country?
0:00:59 > 0:01:01And what do they make of us?
0:01:01 > 0:01:02Off you go!
0:01:07 > 0:01:09This time, I'm going to encounter
0:01:09 > 0:01:12a hand-picked group of woodland animals.
0:01:15 > 0:01:20I want to understand their unique abilities,
0:01:20 > 0:01:23and how they make their homes in the most unlikely places.
0:01:26 > 0:01:29Together, they will reveal our country
0:01:29 > 0:01:32as we've never seen it before.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35Welcome to the Animal's Guide to Britain.
0:01:42 > 0:01:43Once upon a time,
0:01:43 > 0:01:45long, long ago,
0:01:45 > 0:01:49Britain was covered in deep, dark woods.
0:01:51 > 0:01:53To the north, Caledonian pine forests,
0:01:53 > 0:01:59and to the south, dense, broad-leaved woodlands.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03Times have changed though.
0:02:03 > 0:02:07The humans cut down all of the primal forest, cleared up the mess,
0:02:07 > 0:02:10and made it a lot more comfortable for themselves.
0:02:10 > 0:02:12But having said that, and thankfully,
0:02:12 > 0:02:16there are still woodland animals almost everywhere.
0:02:29 > 0:02:33If I were to ask you what's missing from British woodlands today,
0:02:33 > 0:02:37you could say top of the food chain predators.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41I mean, 1,000 years ago, perhaps a little more,
0:02:41 > 0:02:45there could have been bear, wolf and lynx in this very wood.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48But these days, sadly, they're all gone,
0:02:48 > 0:02:52and we humans are free to roam at will here, on our own,
0:02:52 > 0:02:55with our kids, with our dogs, with no threat of attack.
0:02:55 > 0:03:00But that doesn't mean that there aren't top predators here.
0:03:00 > 0:03:05In fact, there's one that's probably watching me right now.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07In fact, it's coming to get me.
0:03:36 > 0:03:37HE GASPS
0:03:48 > 0:03:51What an amazing animal.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02The goshawk!
0:04:02 > 0:04:05The UK's top woodland predator.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07The truth of it is,
0:04:07 > 0:04:09I never had a chance, whatsoever.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11But did you see that manoeuvrability?
0:04:11 > 0:04:17The twisting and turning through the trees was absolutely phenomenal.
0:04:17 > 0:04:22It's easy to see why this large bird is such a terror of the forest.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27A goshawk can bring down prey
0:04:27 > 0:04:29that's over twice its size!
0:04:29 > 0:04:32And it needs to.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35A pair with three chicks will have to bring back
0:04:35 > 0:04:39about ten kilograms of meat a week to feed them.
0:04:41 > 0:04:46In the forest, these powerful predators are virtually invisible,
0:04:46 > 0:04:49preferring to live high in the canopy.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53But what makes them so at home here
0:04:53 > 0:04:57is that they can fly and hunt in the densest forest.
0:05:01 > 0:05:05You never normally get views like this,
0:05:05 > 0:05:07but this is a trained and tame bird - her name is Ellie.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11With the help of some special cameras,
0:05:11 > 0:05:13she's going to show us how she does it.
0:05:19 > 0:05:23The goshawk's chief weapons are speed, stealth and surprise.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29Ellie glides swiftly, close to the forest floor,
0:05:29 > 0:05:32making it very hard for her victim to see or hear her.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38On-board miniature cameras show her point of view,
0:05:38 > 0:05:41travelling at up to 50 kilometres per hour.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46One mistake, one broken wing and she's dead.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55But how does she fly through such dense cover?
0:05:55 > 0:06:00Well, to investigate, I'm taking her into the lab.
0:06:00 > 0:06:05We're going to test Ellie to the absolute limit.
0:06:05 > 0:06:06This is how it's going to go -
0:06:06 > 0:06:09She is going to be on the other side of this wall,
0:06:09 > 0:06:12and I'm going to be here with the lure,
0:06:12 > 0:06:16which means that to get it, she's got to fly through that hole.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18We're going to shrink the size of the hole,
0:06:18 > 0:06:20we're going to change its shape,
0:06:20 > 0:06:24and I've got another dastardly trick up my sleeve.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28First, in real time.
0:06:31 > 0:06:33Now, slowed down.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37And now, by 40 times.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55Slow motion reveals how, with her wings closed,
0:06:55 > 0:07:01her large tail acts as a third wing, creating the lift that she needs.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05Let's make the hole smaller.
0:07:11 > 0:07:12If you look at her eyes,
0:07:12 > 0:07:17you can see her protective nictitating membranes closing.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21They're semi-transparent eyelids that keep out the thorns.
0:07:27 > 0:07:29Now I'm going to rotate the slit,
0:07:29 > 0:07:32to simulate the small gaps between trees.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44Ellie seems able to mould her body to any shape.
0:07:46 > 0:07:50Next, I want to simulate a tunnel through the undergrowth.
0:08:00 > 0:08:02Amazing.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Ellie turns the situation to her advantage,
0:08:05 > 0:08:08using her legs to launch herself at her prey.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30What we're looking at here is a woodland predator that needs
0:08:30 > 0:08:32to exercise all of these acrobatics
0:08:32 > 0:08:34to effectively pursue its prey,
0:08:34 > 0:08:37through the densest, deepest woodlands.
0:08:39 > 0:08:43And these phenomenal skills make goshawks masters of the forest.
0:08:49 > 0:08:53But is there a type of British woodland that they like the most?
0:08:56 > 0:09:00I've come to Kielder Plantation Forest in Northumberland.
0:09:03 > 0:09:07It may not be our idea of idyllic woodland,
0:09:07 > 0:09:11but goshawks see things very differently, and they thrive here.
0:09:14 > 0:09:18With the help of a local expert, I hope to find out why.
0:09:18 > 0:09:20Typical nesting at Kielder here.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23We've got slightly open access, large tree,
0:09:23 > 0:09:28lots of side branches on for them to put a nest in, you know.
0:09:28 > 0:09:29BIRD CALLING
0:09:29 > 0:09:32- Oh.- Ah, there, female's shouting there on the right.
0:09:32 > 0:09:36As we approach this year's nest, the bird gets a bit agitated.
0:09:36 > 0:09:38And that's the typical call you might hear.
0:09:38 > 0:09:40It's going to be a brief glimpse,
0:09:40 > 0:09:42but a brief glimpse of a goshawk, is a good glimpse!
0:09:42 > 0:09:46It is, a very good glimpse, they are very difficult to see.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50Well, sometimes if you can't see them, you can find sign can't you?
0:09:50 > 0:09:51That's right, yeah, absolutely.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54Prey remains could be scattered about within the sort of nest area.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57- Exactly, obviously down here... - Oh, yeah, look...
0:09:57 > 0:09:59There's what's left of something, here.
0:09:59 > 0:10:01- It's carnage. - Absolutely.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03What have we got here then, do you reckon?
0:10:03 > 0:10:06Identification skills, tested to the max with that!
0:10:06 > 0:10:10Oh, yeah, quite a large winged bird, you know.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12Pigeon size, maybe a carrion crow.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15- Another hip girdle here. - Yeah, yeah.
0:10:15 > 0:10:18That's a longer-legged bird altogether, that one.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21Couple of goshawk feathers here, this looks like a gos.
0:10:21 > 0:10:22That's right, yeah.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24So she's been here, sitting in this tree then...
0:10:24 > 0:10:26She's been sitting around there.
0:10:26 > 0:10:30- But, if all of this is here, we're obviously close to the nest? - Absolutely.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33- I mean, on top of it, almost. - Oh, yeah, just over here, absolutely.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36Are there any less midges there?
0:10:36 > 0:10:39I hope so, but I'm not going to guarantee it, I'll tell you.
0:10:42 > 0:10:43Oh, there's a bird there.
0:10:43 > 0:10:45There is.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47A nice, fully grown chick.
0:10:47 > 0:10:49- Look at that. - Look at that.
0:10:53 > 0:10:55Well, that's the most obliging goshawk chick.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57How many are in there?
0:10:57 > 0:10:58There's three in there.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01- Oh, that is stunning, isn't it? - It is.
0:11:01 > 0:11:03It doesn't matter how many times you see it,
0:11:03 > 0:11:05it's just fantastic, you know?
0:11:05 > 0:11:10But the eye, although it hasn't got that blaze of yellowy-orange yet,
0:11:10 > 0:11:12it's still ferocious.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15I think the look would kill you, let alone anything else.
0:11:15 > 0:11:19Kielder provides a decent amount of large prey
0:11:19 > 0:11:23and tall Sitka and larch trees for these birds to nest in.
0:11:23 > 0:11:28But to understand what else this forest offers goshawks,
0:11:28 > 0:11:33we have to explore their love-hate relationship with humans.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48For thousands of years, goshawks hunted what they wanted,
0:11:48 > 0:11:50anywhere in Britain.
0:11:54 > 0:11:59In the Dark Ages, humans prized them as falconry birds.
0:12:01 > 0:12:03Until this.
0:12:05 > 0:12:07With the invention of shotguns,
0:12:07 > 0:12:11goshawks found themselves out of a job and in competition with humans.
0:12:13 > 0:12:17Loathed by gamekeepers, in 1883 they became
0:12:17 > 0:12:19the first British raptors
0:12:19 > 0:12:22to be persecuted to extinction in the wild.
0:12:24 > 0:12:2631 years later,
0:12:26 > 0:12:30gamekeepers' shooting skills were needed on the Western Front.
0:12:30 > 0:12:31Many never returned.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36Gradually, perhaps due to captive birds escaping,
0:12:36 > 0:12:41goshawks began to regain their foothold in British woodlands.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47Today, it's illegal to kill a goshawk, or any raptor.
0:12:52 > 0:12:56The odd thing is, although goshawks are common all over Europe,
0:12:56 > 0:13:01they haven't fully re-colonised the UK.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04There are just a few hundred nesting pairs,
0:13:04 > 0:13:07mainly confined to upland regions.
0:13:07 > 0:13:09Places like Kielder.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15Here's a question for you, Martin - why aren't they spreading out?
0:13:15 > 0:13:18Because there's loads of woodland like this.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21It's one of the great dilemmas of anybody who studies goshawks.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24Why have they not increased within the British Isles to any great degree?
0:13:24 > 0:13:26We think there's only factor why.
0:13:26 > 0:13:30These birds are dispersing away from woodlands
0:13:30 > 0:13:35and are being taken out, killed, by a very small minority of people.
0:13:35 > 0:13:40The gamekeepers, a handful, are still taking out goshawks
0:13:40 > 0:13:44- because of conflict with pheasants, mostly.- Yeah.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47And that's why the population is not increasing.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53For someone running a pheasant business,
0:13:53 > 0:13:56the sight of one of these isn't going to help.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01And is it then that the UK population
0:14:01 > 0:14:05isn't big enough at the moment to withstand this illegal cropping
0:14:05 > 0:14:08of its young birds once they leave protected areas?
0:14:08 > 0:14:10Because, obviously, in this area, they're safe?
0:14:10 > 0:14:12I think it's as simple as that.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15There's always a few get taken out and them
0:14:15 > 0:14:18few would be your future breeders, colonisers of new areas.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20And on the continent in Holland,
0:14:20 > 0:14:23I've seen them nesting in parks and school grounds.
0:14:23 > 0:14:24I mean, they're a very urban bird.
0:14:24 > 0:14:28- Even in cities, Berlin - full of goshawks. - Berlin's a great example.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31It's a strange situation where the birds are forced, really,
0:14:31 > 0:14:33to live in the uplands of Britain
0:14:33 > 0:14:37and yet they probably would like to live in the lowlands of Britain,
0:14:37 > 0:14:39where there's much more prey abundance.
0:14:39 > 0:14:43So, from the goshawk's point of view,
0:14:43 > 0:14:49they'd be happy to live virtually anywhere that's got trees and prey.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51It's truly thrilling
0:14:51 > 0:14:54that the goshawk has bounced back from extinction.
0:14:54 > 0:14:58And there are now several havens like Kielder,
0:14:58 > 0:15:00where they are protected.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03And, you know, with a change in the attitude of just a few humans,
0:15:03 > 0:15:08perhaps it won't be too long before there'll be one in a park near you.
0:15:08 > 0:15:12And what a sight that would be!
0:15:18 > 0:15:21I'll tell you one thing for sure, if you're an animal and you want
0:15:21 > 0:15:25to do well in modern Britain, it pays to be popular with humans.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28You never know what you'll get out of it.
0:15:28 > 0:15:30Free food, legal protection by human law,
0:15:30 > 0:15:34perhaps your own health service.
0:15:34 > 0:15:36Unbelievably, even a Jacuzzi.
0:15:45 > 0:15:47Yes, hedgehogs.
0:15:47 > 0:15:49But I know what you're thinking.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51These are sort of a ponderous animal,
0:15:51 > 0:15:54bumbling around like old ladies at a jumble sale,
0:15:54 > 0:15:57occasionally rolling into a ball or getting run over.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59But they shouldn't be underestimated.
0:15:59 > 0:16:02They have a couple of survival strategies
0:16:02 > 0:16:04which are actually pretty sharp.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09They developed these skills in ancient forests,
0:16:09 > 0:16:12where they evolved some 15 million years ago.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20Hedgehogs have a wide diet,
0:16:20 > 0:16:22including slugs, snails,
0:16:22 > 0:16:23worms and insects.
0:16:27 > 0:16:32But they'll also take carcasses and fruit from the forest floor.
0:16:32 > 0:16:36They use their acute sense of smell to hunt prey in darkness,
0:16:36 > 0:16:40when many of their rivals, such as birds, can't.
0:16:41 > 0:16:46And in winter, when the food runs out, they've got another strategy.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50They can truly hibernate, which means they can survive periods
0:16:50 > 0:16:53when there's absolutely no food for them.
0:16:55 > 0:17:00And in case this fattened up animal is a temptation for a predator,
0:17:00 > 0:17:04their backs are covered with 5,000-7,000 spines.
0:17:11 > 0:17:13And take a look at this.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16Climbing skills, vital for negotiating the forest,
0:17:16 > 0:17:19are just as useful for fences and walls.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24And if they fall,
0:17:24 > 0:17:27their spines act as shock absorbers.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31What makes the hedgehogs' view of Britain so interesting is that,
0:17:31 > 0:17:36although they're woodland animals, they've survived in the UK
0:17:36 > 0:17:39by adapting to other habitats.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43Now I need you to do something for me.
0:17:43 > 0:17:45I need you to change scale.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49Get yourself down to the hedgehog's size and come in here.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53Look, underneath here is a complex ecosystem with mini trees
0:17:53 > 0:17:57and the whole thing's very akin to woodland.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00But it's not woodland at all - this is a hedgerow,
0:18:00 > 0:18:05and it's with the creation of hedges that our hedgehog story begins.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13Around 600 years ago, with a boom in agriculture,
0:18:13 > 0:18:17more woodlands were cleared and thousands of miles
0:18:17 > 0:18:20of new hedgerows grown to enclose the fields.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23One animal took to this new habitat so well
0:18:23 > 0:18:26that it was re-named the hedgehog.
0:18:29 > 0:18:31Perhaps it adapted too well.
0:18:31 > 0:18:35Farmers accused them of scrumping apples.
0:18:35 > 0:18:36Oi!
0:18:36 > 0:18:38And stealing milk!
0:18:38 > 0:18:39Moo!
0:18:39 > 0:18:42Hedgehogs were even accused of witchcraft.
0:18:42 > 0:18:43CACKLING
0:18:43 > 0:18:48In the Victorian era, the hedgehog adapted again.
0:18:48 > 0:18:53It became "Cellar Hog", pest control par excellence.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56Appreciated by humans at last,
0:18:56 > 0:19:00they were kept under the stairs to control the cockroaches.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07With the 20th century, came mechanised farming.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12Miles of hedgerows were cut down,
0:19:12 > 0:19:17and the hedgehog's food exterminated with pesticides.
0:19:17 > 0:19:21But some hedgehogs found their way into gardens.
0:19:21 > 0:19:25Short grass gave easy access to food,
0:19:25 > 0:19:30and piles of leaves were great for nesting.
0:19:30 > 0:19:31Thanks to their agility,
0:19:31 > 0:19:35they could cover several gardens in a night, looking for slugs,
0:19:35 > 0:19:38and for romance.
0:19:39 > 0:19:44Today, the hedgehog is a firm favourite with British humans.
0:19:44 > 0:19:49It even has its own national health service.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52Yes, it's become Britain's most rescued animal,
0:19:52 > 0:19:55and this is St Tiggywinkles in Berkshire.
0:19:55 > 0:19:59Named after the famous Beatrix Potter character, Mrs Tiggy-Winkle,
0:19:59 > 0:20:05it's home to the world's first, purpose-built hedgehog hospital unit.
0:20:05 > 0:20:10All the health treatments the modern hedgehog could want are on offer.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12Operations by leading surgeons...
0:20:12 > 0:20:15round-the-clock care...
0:20:15 > 0:20:18and physiotherapy.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20There we go!
0:20:20 > 0:20:24In a rich and varied life, I now think I've seen it all -
0:20:24 > 0:20:26a hedgehog in a Jacuzzi!
0:20:26 > 0:20:29- Yep!- Two lengths...
0:20:29 > 0:20:31You can see the tail which is normally hidden.
0:20:31 > 0:20:32That's it.
0:20:34 > 0:20:38But despite the expenditure, all is not well.
0:20:41 > 0:20:43In just the last 25 years,
0:20:43 > 0:20:47the British hedgehog population has crashed by 50%.
0:20:49 > 0:20:55So, for a hedgehog's view of Britain, we have to understand why.
0:20:55 > 0:20:59So what is it that's happened in the last couple of decades?
0:20:59 > 0:21:02What is it that's gone wrong for British hedgehogs?
0:21:04 > 0:21:07Well, besides modern farming,
0:21:07 > 0:21:11there are other big challenges for hedgehogs,
0:21:11 > 0:21:13like...
0:21:13 > 0:21:15the badger.
0:21:15 > 0:21:20The hedgehog's ancient enemy is double trouble.
0:21:20 > 0:21:24First, they compete for a lot of the same food, but worse...
0:21:24 > 0:21:25with their strong claws,
0:21:25 > 0:21:29they can break through hedgehogs' spiny defences and eat them.
0:21:34 > 0:21:40Largely thanks to protection by law, badger numbers are booming...
0:21:40 > 0:21:44especially in the South West and Scotland.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47And hedgehogs are being pushed out of these areas.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53But how about the suburban habitats,
0:21:53 > 0:21:56where there's no farming and few badgers?
0:21:57 > 0:22:01Why are hedgehogs on the decline in these places too?
0:22:06 > 0:22:08Well, I've come to a suburb in Reading
0:22:08 > 0:22:10to try to get to the bottom of it.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16- Hello, Phil.- Hi, Chris.- How are you? - I'm all right, thank you.- Hi, guys.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18Good evening. Formal handshake.
0:22:18 > 0:22:21'Phil and his collaborators have been radio-tagging
0:22:21 > 0:22:24'hundreds of hedgehogs, all over the country,
0:22:24 > 0:22:28'in the hope that their movements might reveal the problem.'
0:22:30 > 0:22:35'Their job tonight is to get a fix on one of the local hogs.'
0:22:35 > 0:22:37Guys, have you found anything?
0:22:37 > 0:22:41It should be just in the back garden of that house.
0:22:41 > 0:22:44That's pretty...pretty accurate. Where are we?
0:22:44 > 0:22:48- This one tends to move into the park.- You know it well?
0:22:48 > 0:22:50Followed it on several nights, now.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53It's a male that spends his time
0:22:53 > 0:22:57foraging in the more open gardens and the nearby park,
0:22:57 > 0:23:02a habitat they've found which is typical for hedgehog males.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06It's easier to get around and to find females.
0:23:06 > 0:23:08Female hedgehogs, on the other hand,
0:23:08 > 0:23:11tend to opt for the greater security of the gardens
0:23:11 > 0:23:13of terraced houses and semis.
0:23:15 > 0:23:20The research has also uncovered the big hedgehog killer -
0:23:20 > 0:23:23a change in garden fashion.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28Yes, the hedgehog's resilience is at last reaching the limit,
0:23:28 > 0:23:31faced with... new trends in gardening.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36The major issue is to do with the fact that many gardens are simply too basic
0:23:36 > 0:23:38to meet the requirements of hedgehogs.
0:23:38 > 0:23:39So there isn't an area for cover
0:23:39 > 0:23:42so they can rest securely during the day.
0:23:42 > 0:23:44- They're too tidy, you mean? - Too tidy,
0:23:44 > 0:23:46particularly in the kind of area which we're in now,
0:23:46 > 0:23:49which is high density.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52Many of these gardens are devoid of any vegetation -
0:23:52 > 0:23:54particularly, large, mature trees are missing.
0:23:54 > 0:24:00They're also typified by very small gardens with very high fences.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03But those fences also go very close to the ground,
0:24:03 > 0:24:06so hedgehogs find it just physically very difficult to move around
0:24:06 > 0:24:09- from garden to garden whilst they're foraging.- Hmm.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12- So it's not the Utopia that they hoped, then, really?- No.
0:24:14 > 0:24:19This style of garden is hard for hedgehogs to get in or out of...
0:24:19 > 0:24:21and to find food in.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27Gardens that appeal to humans aren't always good for hogs.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31But we can make a difference.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33If we're lucky enough to have a garden
0:24:33 > 0:24:36and even luckier enough to have hedgehogs,
0:24:36 > 0:24:38then we can make their lives easier.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43If you were to put a couple of gaps in the fence
0:24:43 > 0:24:47and some messy leaves to nest in, then you too could have
0:24:47 > 0:24:52one of these ancient woodland creatures in your garden.
0:24:52 > 0:24:54And they'll pay you for the privilege,
0:24:54 > 0:24:59by keeping some of your other garden animals under control
0:24:59 > 0:25:02in the most eco-friendly way.
0:25:03 > 0:25:08As for the future of hedgehogs, well, there's one Utopia left...
0:25:09 > 0:25:14..thanks to an explosion in golf courses.
0:25:14 > 0:25:16This is now Britain's best hedgehog habitat
0:25:16 > 0:25:20with up to 260 hogs per hectare.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23The greens are easy to find food in,
0:25:23 > 0:25:26the rough, ideal for nesting,
0:25:26 > 0:25:31and, best of all, there's no-one around when they emerge at dusk.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40The story of British woodland animals varies greatly,
0:25:40 > 0:25:43depending on which species you are.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46Some haven't done terribly well in modern Britain.
0:25:46 > 0:25:50Others, a little better. But are there any truly great winners?
0:25:50 > 0:25:52Well, gladly, yes, there are.
0:25:52 > 0:25:57And for one collection of species, no amount of pampering has been enough.
0:25:57 > 0:26:02I know we've seen hedgehog hospitals, I know we've seen hedgehog Jacuzzis,
0:26:02 > 0:26:06but humans have changed the entire landscape
0:26:06 > 0:26:10to make great places for these things to hang out...
0:26:20 > 0:26:25Deer. More specifically, fallow deer like these.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28Now, as an animal, they're tall, they're fast, they're elegant.
0:26:28 > 0:26:31And they're Britain's most magnificent land mammal,
0:26:31 > 0:26:35resplendent in dappled or white or black.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40They need large tracts of woodland for security
0:26:40 > 0:26:43and a variety of young plants to eat.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47And they eat grass too, so they tend to hang around the woodland edges.
0:26:48 > 0:26:52I've got to tell you, they're tremendously successful.
0:26:52 > 0:26:56There are about 200,000 of these mammals currently roaming Britain.
0:26:58 > 0:27:02So how did they come to be in such a privileged position?
0:27:04 > 0:27:08Well, to get to grips with the fallow deer, we need to think about history
0:27:08 > 0:27:09and, in particular,
0:27:09 > 0:27:14perhaps the most auspicious date in British human history.
0:27:22 > 0:27:27As every deer knows, 1066 marks the invasion
0:27:27 > 0:27:31of the English woodland by fallow deer from Normandy.
0:27:32 > 0:27:37William The Conqueror created 21 massive royal forests,
0:27:37 > 0:27:42in which deer had more rights than the peasants.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47The deal was, in exchange for being hunted by the king,
0:27:47 > 0:27:51deer were protected from all other humans,
0:27:51 > 0:27:55with dire consequences for anyone who so much as bothered a deer.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57SHOUTING
0:28:07 > 0:28:11It was an arrangement that did deer and royalty proud.
0:28:12 > 0:28:16Later monarchs upped the number of hunting forests to 80!
0:28:20 > 0:28:23Hunting fallow deer was the sport of kings,
0:28:23 > 0:28:27because deer pose such a formidable test to the hunter.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32And it's all thanks to their natural ability
0:28:32 > 0:28:34to escape enemies like wolves.
0:28:38 > 0:28:42So how did these medieval deer cope with those predators?
0:28:42 > 0:28:44Well, obviously, they've evolved to do so,
0:28:44 > 0:28:49but they've achieved that by becoming masters of surveillance and evasion.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56And using this somewhat crude, child's toy,
0:28:56 > 0:28:58and years of training from Blue Peter,
0:28:58 > 0:29:01maybe even a couple of toilet rolls and some sticky-backed plastic,
0:29:01 > 0:29:07I'm going to transform this into a facsimile of a super-sensing deer!
0:29:15 > 0:29:17I can take it, I can take it. I know what you're thinking -
0:29:17 > 0:29:21this looks really, really naff, this is a poor job...
0:29:21 > 0:29:24but it isn't. This will perfectly demonstrate the deer's senses.
0:29:24 > 0:29:26Let's start with the eyesight,
0:29:26 > 0:29:28and I'm using these two small cameras here,
0:29:28 > 0:29:32which have extremely wide-angle lenses.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35And this is perfect, because, believe it or not,
0:29:35 > 0:29:39the deer can see through 310 degrees.
0:29:39 > 0:29:43There's only 50 degrees where it can't see,
0:29:43 > 0:29:44and that's directly
0:29:44 > 0:29:46behind its head.
0:29:46 > 0:29:50So...if anything was stalking it, anything was sneaking up on it,
0:29:50 > 0:29:56any prowling wolf or loping lynx were close to this animal,
0:29:56 > 0:30:01it can see me all the way around here.
0:30:01 > 0:30:04They've also got specially adapted pupils.
0:30:04 > 0:30:06Some animals have vertical slits, like cats,
0:30:06 > 0:30:13but as they close their pupil, their vision decays in these two areas.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16But not deer - they have a horizontal pupil
0:30:16 > 0:30:18and as that pupil contracts in this way,
0:30:18 > 0:30:22they might lose definition up here and definition down here, but they've
0:30:22 > 0:30:29still got a full panorama all the way round through those 310 degrees.
0:30:29 > 0:30:33They've also got extremely acute vision in low light.
0:30:33 > 0:30:37They've got more low-light sensitive cells. But there are compromises.
0:30:37 > 0:30:41They're almost, in a way, colour blind.
0:30:41 > 0:30:44So if I were here, wearing a red shirt like this,
0:30:44 > 0:30:46from the deer's point of view,
0:30:46 > 0:30:50it would normally only see this as a sort of dull brown.
0:30:50 > 0:30:54But whatever limitations they might have visually
0:30:54 > 0:30:56are made up for when it comes to their hearing.
0:30:56 > 0:31:01I'm very proud of these facsimiles that I've made because they work.
0:31:01 > 0:31:02Firstly, listen to this.
0:31:02 > 0:31:06Pssh-pssh-pssh-pssh-pssh-pssh.
0:31:06 > 0:31:13- QUIETER THEN LOUDER: - Pssh-pssh-pssh-pssh-pssh.
0:31:13 > 0:31:14Can you hear that?
0:31:14 > 0:31:16That's because each of these ears is able to
0:31:16 > 0:31:22capture the sound here and transfer it to the sensitive part of the ear.
0:31:22 > 0:31:23In this case, a small microphone.
0:31:23 > 0:31:27And the deer can move their ears through 180 degrees each
0:31:27 > 0:31:31which means they can face forward or twist them all the way back.
0:31:31 > 0:31:35And in fact, they can even do it independently.
0:31:35 > 0:31:39So one is facing forward and one is facing back, like that.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42Sneaking up on them is pretty tough. But it gets tougher still.
0:31:42 > 0:31:44Because their last sense, their nose,
0:31:44 > 0:31:47a nice, little, teddy bear black button down here,
0:31:47 > 0:31:52which is nine times, nine times more sensitive than ours.
0:31:55 > 0:31:59As well as their excellent surveillance system,
0:31:59 > 0:32:02deer have a team strategy for evading predators.
0:32:02 > 0:32:05Herding.
0:32:05 > 0:32:09Most of the deer's predators prefer to attack a lone animal.
0:32:09 > 0:32:15So, rule number one for any deer is stick together.
0:32:15 > 0:32:19However, in modern Britain their defensive strategy
0:32:19 > 0:32:23backfires in the face of a new predator.
0:32:23 > 0:32:26It's one that first crept into Britain from Germany
0:32:26 > 0:32:30about 120 years ago.
0:32:30 > 0:32:33The predator we're talking about is the car
0:32:33 > 0:32:35and this is their ideal habitat, the M25.
0:32:35 > 0:32:41Vast packs of these things prowl here, 24 hours a day,
0:32:41 > 0:32:44365 days a year.
0:32:44 > 0:32:47But look carefully over there in the field
0:32:47 > 0:32:50and you'll see a herd of fallow deer.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53But when these two come together, deer and car,
0:32:53 > 0:32:55it's a great source of conflict.
0:33:01 > 0:33:04This unique research footage shows the problem.
0:33:04 > 0:33:10Their instinct to stick together makes them easy prey to the car.
0:33:10 > 0:33:15And what's more, they're principally active at night
0:33:15 > 0:33:21and then their extremely sensitive night vision is very easily
0:33:21 > 0:33:24dazzled by the headlights and they just freeze.
0:33:24 > 0:33:26And the next thing is they get hit.
0:33:28 > 0:33:32But the biggest problem of all is that roads have parcelled
0:33:32 > 0:33:36the deer's roomy forest into lots of smaller pieces.
0:33:36 > 0:33:39Just look at Epping Forest.
0:33:39 > 0:33:44Deer are forced to cross roads as they move around their territory.
0:33:44 > 0:33:48Worst of all, they have no natural fear of this lethal predator.
0:33:48 > 0:33:56Each year in the UK 74,000 deer of all species suffer the consequences
0:33:56 > 0:34:02of having the wrong senses for 21st century Britain.
0:34:02 > 0:34:07With their population at an all-time high, casualties can only increase.
0:34:07 > 0:34:10So from the deer's perspective,
0:34:10 > 0:34:13the best sort of woodland
0:34:13 > 0:34:18is one that's large, has few roads and importantly, low speed limits.
0:34:21 > 0:34:24But on the whole, the verdict of the fallow deer on this country
0:34:24 > 0:34:29has to be that it remains a very special place to live.
0:34:29 > 0:34:33After all, what other animal can claim
0:34:33 > 0:34:40large parts of the UK were custom made just for them?
0:34:40 > 0:34:47There's one British woodland animal that can cause an adult human male
0:34:47 > 0:34:49to fly into a fit of panic.
0:34:49 > 0:34:53A creature that, if it was just a little bit bigger,
0:34:53 > 0:34:56wouldn't be out of place on Dr Who.
0:34:56 > 0:34:58But it's not just scary.
0:34:58 > 0:35:02Even today, its ecology is only poorly understood,
0:35:02 > 0:35:06and therefore it remains an extremely mysterious animal.
0:35:06 > 0:35:09Why, for instance, is it in decline?
0:35:09 > 0:35:13Why does it have a taste for these woodlands around London?
0:35:13 > 0:35:16Well, these things are only partially understood.
0:35:16 > 0:35:18But one thing's for sure -
0:35:18 > 0:35:23If we can investigate its shadowy life history, we can develop
0:35:23 > 0:35:28a far better understanding of what makes a healthy British woodland.
0:35:39 > 0:35:41Stag beetles, absolutely superb.
0:35:41 > 0:35:46And named, of course, because their highly modified mandibles
0:35:46 > 0:35:50resemble the antlers of male deer - stags.
0:35:50 > 0:35:53In fact they use them for similar purposes -
0:35:53 > 0:35:55for fighting and in the case of the beetles,
0:35:55 > 0:35:57also for grasping the female by the thorax
0:35:57 > 0:36:01and holding her down whilst they're mating.
0:36:01 > 0:36:06But I've got to say, that due to their mildly terrifying appearance,
0:36:06 > 0:36:11over the years they've received a somewhat unsympathetic human press.
0:36:16 > 0:36:20Back in the Middle Ages, the stag beetle was seen as a thing
0:36:20 > 0:36:26of the devil, emanating from the depths of Hell, accompanied by fire.
0:36:31 > 0:36:33I suppose you can see why because stag beetles
0:36:33 > 0:36:36do emerge from the ground during summer storms,
0:36:36 > 0:36:38when it's hot and humid.
0:36:41 > 0:36:43Legend said they could summon the lightning
0:36:43 > 0:36:47and that they could carry a burning coal in their antlers.
0:36:47 > 0:36:49to do the devil's work.
0:36:50 > 0:36:53There probably isn't any truth in that.
0:36:53 > 0:36:57But their antlers can look red hot.
0:36:57 > 0:37:01And if it's warm enough, they can fly...
0:37:01 > 0:37:04Just about.
0:37:17 > 0:37:21But none of these stories is as odd as
0:37:21 > 0:37:25the real-life story of the stag beetle.
0:37:25 > 0:37:27To see Britain from their point of view,
0:37:27 > 0:37:32allow me to take you on a peculiar journey
0:37:32 > 0:37:35into their very strange lives,
0:37:35 > 0:37:42around five years of which is spent underground as a larva,
0:37:42 > 0:37:44eating rotten wood.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47Now debate rages as to how much they actually consume.
0:37:47 > 0:37:51Some claim it's up to up to 22 cubic centimetres a day.
0:37:51 > 0:37:54That's about four or five golf balls a week.
0:37:54 > 0:37:56But look at this wood here.
0:37:56 > 0:38:00Clearly, throughout the course of their lives in the wood,
0:38:00 > 0:38:04these stag beetle larvae are eating a lot of the stuff.
0:38:04 > 0:38:07These creatures somehow turn wood into fat.
0:38:07 > 0:38:10And they're very good at it.
0:38:10 > 0:38:15The larvae get pretty big. Look at this, absolutely brilliant.
0:38:15 > 0:38:19And this is probably only about half grown.
0:38:19 > 0:38:22Because they can get about the size of my little finger,
0:38:22 > 0:38:24and I'm not exaggerating.
0:38:27 > 0:38:32But even at this size, it's nowhere near being a grown up stag beetle.
0:38:32 > 0:38:37To get to that stage they have to go through another stage.
0:38:37 > 0:38:41Prepare yourself for the stag beetle pupa.
0:38:41 > 0:38:46This, which looks like something straight out of Aliens,
0:38:46 > 0:38:49is a female stag beetle pupa.
0:38:49 > 0:38:53And after about six weeks, it's going to emerge as an adult.
0:38:53 > 0:39:00The next stage is one of the most incredible transformations in nature
0:39:00 > 0:39:04as the soft and vulnerable pupa
0:39:04 > 0:39:08turns into a battle-ready beetle.
0:39:22 > 0:39:25They then spend the best part of a year in the ground
0:39:25 > 0:39:27before their big moment.
0:39:29 > 0:39:34All of those years of munching are just preparation for a brief
0:39:34 > 0:39:37period of glory, when the beetles
0:39:37 > 0:39:39emerge as adults like this.
0:39:39 > 0:39:40And it is a brief period.
0:39:40 > 0:39:45They're only like this for somewhere between 15 and 40 days before they die.
0:39:45 > 0:39:48And they're incredibly busy - they don't even stop to eat.
0:39:48 > 0:39:51All of the eating has been done by the larvae -
0:39:51 > 0:39:55that's the feeding machine. When they're like this, adults, they're sex machines.
0:39:55 > 0:40:00When it comes down to it, the males are looking for females, fighting and then reproducing.
0:40:03 > 0:40:07The females release an intoxicating pheromone,
0:40:07 > 0:40:09which attracts males from far around.
0:40:16 > 0:40:18And if there's more than one...
0:40:18 > 0:40:21their first instinct is to fight.
0:40:54 > 0:40:57All being well, when they've mated,
0:40:57 > 0:40:59the females can begin to lay their eggs.
0:40:59 > 0:41:03And they deposit about 20 of these, singularly, into soil
0:41:03 > 0:41:06but always in close proximity to rotting wood.
0:41:06 > 0:41:11So it could be a buried log, a log pile, the base of a fence post,
0:41:11 > 0:41:16but, typically, they like great big rotten stumps, like this.
0:41:16 > 0:41:19They tend to favour oak, but they will go into other species.
0:41:19 > 0:41:21As soon as the larva emerges from the egg,
0:41:21 > 0:41:24it moves into the wood and begins to munch it.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27And then the cycle can begin again.
0:41:31 > 0:41:32Now, at this point,
0:41:32 > 0:41:37you may be wondering why you haven't seen a stag beetle near you.
0:41:37 > 0:41:40Unless you're in their favourite part of Britain, you won't.
0:41:42 > 0:41:46You see, stag beetles prefer the South East.
0:41:46 > 0:41:50But no-one really knows why.
0:41:50 > 0:41:52Yes, they need a warm climate for flying,
0:41:52 > 0:41:56but then why don't they like Cornwall?
0:41:56 > 0:42:00Their other main need is buried rotten wood, preferably oak.
0:42:00 > 0:42:06But there's plenty of that all over England and Wales. So why the South East?
0:42:06 > 0:42:10Well, compare the stag beetle distribution with this...
0:42:10 > 0:42:13showing different types of rock.
0:42:13 > 0:42:16Chalk, in white, surrounds London and Hampshire,
0:42:16 > 0:42:19which are like stag beetle islands.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23And there is a theory to explain this.
0:42:23 > 0:42:28To digest wood, stag beetles need wood-rotting fungi
0:42:28 > 0:42:31to break down the tough woody cells.
0:42:31 > 0:42:36And these vital fungi can't survive in chalky places.
0:42:36 > 0:42:39So perhaps the chalk is like a "no-go" zone,
0:42:39 > 0:42:42keeping Britain's stag beetles in.
0:42:45 > 0:42:47But where stag beetles do occur,
0:42:47 > 0:42:51they have a significant impact on the environment.
0:42:55 > 0:42:59So why is this weird insect-y story so important?
0:42:59 > 0:43:01It's down to this - dead wood -
0:43:01 > 0:43:04and the fact that the stag beetle larvae are eating it.
0:43:04 > 0:43:10They're recycling it, breaking it down and turning it into smaller parts that can be rebuilt
0:43:10 > 0:43:13into all of this, the woodland ecosystem.
0:43:15 > 0:43:20Stag beetles are standard bearers for a whole rotten wood community...
0:43:21 > 0:43:26..insects that spend their lives turning dead wood back into woodland.
0:43:30 > 0:43:31So without them,
0:43:31 > 0:43:35the woodland ecosystem simply wouldn't work at all.
0:43:35 > 0:43:38Now, here in Richmond Park, we're really lucky -
0:43:38 > 0:43:42we've got lots of standing dead timber and plenty of fallen material too.
0:43:42 > 0:43:46But in the wider UK, we're way too tidy!
0:43:46 > 0:43:47There isn't enough dead wood.
0:43:47 > 0:43:51And I've got to tell you that 30% of all of the creatures
0:43:51 > 0:43:55that live on an oak tree live on it after it's dead.
0:43:57 > 0:44:01So what the stag beetles are telling us
0:44:01 > 0:44:05is that they're perfectly content to stay here, in South East England...
0:44:05 > 0:44:07but only on one condition.
0:44:07 > 0:44:13Whether it's our woods, parks or gardens, we humans must take care
0:44:13 > 0:44:19to leave out plenty of lovely fungus-infected dead wood.
0:44:26 > 0:44:28Life in Britain's woodlands can be pretty good
0:44:28 > 0:44:31if you're a goshawk or a deer.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35And it could be for hedgehogs and stag beetles,
0:44:35 > 0:44:40if we were to manage our woodlands and gardens with their needs in mind.
0:44:42 > 0:44:47So is the future looking pretty rosy for all of our woodland creatures?
0:44:49 > 0:44:52Well, not exactly.
0:44:52 > 0:44:56There's one, in fact, that's in real trouble.
0:44:56 > 0:44:59It faces a daily onslaught, the loss of its home,
0:44:59 > 0:45:03the theft of its food, even biological warfare.
0:45:03 > 0:45:08All wrought upon it by a most unwelcome invader.
0:45:08 > 0:45:12But its story is fascinating, because it tells us a lot
0:45:12 > 0:45:18about how the changing face of Britain's woodland is influencing our woodland wildlife.
0:45:30 > 0:45:31The red squirrel.
0:45:35 > 0:45:37I know, I know...
0:45:37 > 0:45:39Come here.
0:45:42 > 0:45:44How about this for a close encounter...
0:45:44 > 0:45:46with a squirrel?
0:45:46 > 0:45:50'This is a little orphaned red that was picked up dehydrated
0:45:50 > 0:45:53'and covered in flies on a roadside.'
0:45:55 > 0:46:01He's been nurtured back into what is very clearly rude health here.
0:46:04 > 0:46:05Ooh, you nibbling my nose?
0:46:05 > 0:46:10'It's like having a big red, fluffy-tailed flea on you!
0:46:10 > 0:46:13'His agility is breath-taking.
0:46:13 > 0:46:18'Long claws and double-jointed ankles are great for climbing trees.
0:46:18 > 0:46:20'His tail helps him balance,
0:46:20 > 0:46:23'so he can reach the end of the slenderest branch.'
0:46:30 > 0:46:34'Outside of Scotland and a few scattered refuges,
0:46:34 > 0:46:37'you're unlikely to see one nowadays.
0:46:37 > 0:46:40'But these fabulous little creatures have a British pedigree
0:46:40 > 0:46:42'that goes way back.'
0:46:52 > 0:46:57Red squirrels have been in British woodlands as long as they've existed.
0:46:57 > 0:46:591,000 years ago, they were plentiful
0:46:59 > 0:47:02and valued by humans for their fur -
0:47:02 > 0:47:06amongst the reddest squirrel fur in Europe.
0:47:07 > 0:47:11Their coats were prized, even by the greatest in the land.
0:47:14 > 0:47:17But as human demand for timber grew,
0:47:17 > 0:47:19for fuel and ship-building,
0:47:19 > 0:47:23woodlands began to disappear, and red squirrels with them.
0:47:25 > 0:47:28The Victorians made an attempt at replanting the forests,
0:47:28 > 0:47:32but then, disaster struck.
0:47:32 > 0:47:35Before those red squirrels could properly recover,
0:47:35 > 0:47:39they were to get on the wrong end of a new fashion for Victorian humans,
0:47:39 > 0:47:43and that was introducing non-native species.
0:47:45 > 0:47:49In 1876, one Mr Brocklehurst deliberately released two pairs
0:47:49 > 0:47:53of American grey squirrels at Henbury Park in Cheshire.
0:47:55 > 0:47:58No-one expected the cataclysm that followed.
0:48:01 > 0:48:05Across England, Wales and Ireland, the reds were in retreat.
0:48:11 > 0:48:12You see this?
0:48:12 > 0:48:17This wizened old edifice is no less than Hadrian's Wall,
0:48:17 > 0:48:22one of the great symbols of a north-south divide, here in the UK.
0:48:22 > 0:48:27And perhaps today, there's a biological parallel here.
0:48:27 > 0:48:29Take a look at this...
0:48:29 > 0:48:32Stretching all the way from here, right the way south
0:48:32 > 0:48:36to the English Channel, is now the land of the greys.
0:48:37 > 0:48:39They've completely occupied it.
0:48:39 > 0:48:42Look round here. You see this stretch of forest?
0:48:42 > 0:48:44Stretching from here, right the way across here?
0:48:44 > 0:48:47Well, that's Kielder Forest, this is Northumberland.
0:48:47 > 0:48:51And that's the last great refuge of the English red squirrel.
0:48:51 > 0:48:57But have you ever wondered why the British Redcoats rolled over
0:48:57 > 0:49:00and capitulated quite so easily
0:49:00 > 0:49:04in the face of such a light American invasion force?
0:49:06 > 0:49:09So, let's start with those greys.
0:49:09 > 0:49:13Why do they make such bad company for the reds?
0:49:13 > 0:49:16Well, greys have stronger stomachs.
0:49:18 > 0:49:20They can eat bark...
0:49:24 > 0:49:29..and acorns, even before they're ripe, so depriving the reds of food.
0:49:30 > 0:49:34Now, get this, because this is truly amazing.
0:49:36 > 0:49:39There's now some evidence that suggests that grey squirrels
0:49:39 > 0:49:42actually think - yes, think -
0:49:42 > 0:49:44differently to the reds,
0:49:44 > 0:49:48and that this might give them a critical advantage
0:49:48 > 0:49:50when it comes to surviving the winter.
0:49:51 > 0:49:55It's as though grey squirrels have the minds of criminals.
0:49:56 > 0:50:01Red squirrels, unlucky enough to find themselves in a forest with greys,
0:50:01 > 0:50:03should watch their cache!
0:50:04 > 0:50:10In the worst-hit areas, up to two-thirds of the reds' food caches are raided by the greys,
0:50:10 > 0:50:12leaving little for the winter.
0:50:13 > 0:50:17Greys are highly skilled thieves, stealing from each other
0:50:17 > 0:50:19and the reds.
0:50:23 > 0:50:27They're suspicious of others when they're hiding their nuts.
0:50:27 > 0:50:30But their cunning doesn't stop there.
0:50:32 > 0:50:35To try and disguise the location of their buried treasure,
0:50:35 > 0:50:40they deliberately dig lots of holes but only put nuts into a few.
0:50:41 > 0:50:44And if they notice another squirrel watching,
0:50:44 > 0:50:47they dig even more of these false holes.
0:50:49 > 0:50:53They also bury their nuts under shrubbery or in mud,
0:50:53 > 0:50:55where they're harder for others to find.
0:50:59 > 0:51:02Sadly, they're not only cleverer. I've got to tell you,
0:51:02 > 0:51:06when it comes to this typical UK deciduous woodland,
0:51:06 > 0:51:09they're an ecologically more robust animal.
0:51:09 > 0:51:12So if there was ever going to be a successful invader,
0:51:12 > 0:51:14it was the grey squirrel.
0:51:14 > 0:51:18But there's one more thing that makes them absolutely disastrous
0:51:18 > 0:51:19when it comes to the reds.
0:51:19 > 0:51:23They carry a virus, the squirrel Parapoxvirus.
0:51:23 > 0:51:26Now, the greys are largely resistant to it,
0:51:26 > 0:51:30but when they come into contact with the reds, it wipes them out.
0:51:31 > 0:51:35So, it's easy to see why some have written off the red squirrel.
0:51:39 > 0:51:40But is there anything,
0:51:40 > 0:51:44anything at all, in their favour?
0:51:45 > 0:51:49Well, yes, there is... pine forests.
0:51:53 > 0:51:57Over 70% of British red squirrels now live in Scotland,
0:51:57 > 0:52:03either in ancient Caledonian pine forests or plantations,
0:52:03 > 0:52:05such as Sitka spruce.
0:52:06 > 0:52:10So why in these woodlands are the reds more successful than the greys?
0:52:12 > 0:52:14It comes down to two reasons.
0:52:14 > 0:52:18One of them is this - the Sitka spruce cone -
0:52:18 > 0:52:22and the other is the animals' need to optimally forage.
0:52:22 > 0:52:24What does that mean?
0:52:24 > 0:52:26Well, it means that when it goes looking for food,
0:52:26 > 0:52:30it's got to get enough energy back from that food to warrant
0:52:30 > 0:52:34all of that it expends finding it, handling it and eating it.
0:52:36 > 0:52:38Take a look at this.
0:52:38 > 0:52:41This is a red squirrel's feeding platform.
0:52:41 > 0:52:44They've collected these cones from up in the trees here,
0:52:44 > 0:52:47they've carried them all the way down - at a cost -
0:52:47 > 0:52:53and then they've sat down here and they have chewed off all of the bracts here
0:52:53 > 0:52:56to get at the seeds inside.
0:52:56 > 0:53:00And I've got to tell you that the seeds are very small.
0:53:00 > 0:53:04So the return for their investment is equally small.
0:53:04 > 0:53:09Now, red squirrels can get enough to sustain a small population here,
0:53:09 > 0:53:11in the forest.
0:53:11 > 0:53:15But when the greys come in and they try eating these things,
0:53:15 > 0:53:20they simply can't get enough energy out of the seeds in these cones
0:53:20 > 0:53:21to survive here.
0:53:21 > 0:53:26So, for the moment at least, this is red squirrel-ville.
0:53:33 > 0:53:37So with any luck, the reds will hang on here for a few more years.
0:53:37 > 0:53:40But they have something else on their side...
0:53:40 > 0:53:42humans!
0:53:42 > 0:53:46Some are so passionate about saving the native red squirrel,
0:53:46 > 0:53:49that they'll do anything to get rid of the greys.
0:53:53 > 0:53:56I'm off to the front line, in Northumberland.
0:53:57 > 0:54:00I've got nothing against the grey squirrels personally.
0:54:00 > 0:54:04It's just they're just in the wrong place and in the wrong time.
0:54:04 > 0:54:06But you like the reds?
0:54:06 > 0:54:09Yeah, I love them. They're beautiful mystical little things
0:54:09 > 0:54:11if you ever have a chance to see them.
0:54:11 > 0:54:15'I'm joining Paul Parker on his daily trap check.'
0:54:15 > 0:54:18- Here's the nuts, then. - 'His traps are designed to catch grey squirrels humanely,
0:54:18 > 0:54:21'and hazelnuts are the bait of choice.'
0:54:24 > 0:54:28- Ah, nothing in this one either. - Mm, it's empty as well, isn't it?
0:54:30 > 0:54:34Nothing here neither. Nothing. No.
0:54:34 > 0:54:36'Paul's organisation has come up with a way of recouping
0:54:36 > 0:54:38'some of his costs...
0:54:38 > 0:54:41'one that's not going to be everyone's cup of tea.'
0:54:41 > 0:54:43Right, we'll get on our way, then.
0:54:43 > 0:54:46'I'm not sure that it's going to be my cup of tea either.'
0:54:48 > 0:54:50Where are we off to now, then?
0:54:50 > 0:54:52We're off to a place I know we can get something nice to eat.
0:54:52 > 0:54:55It's not a greasy caff or anything, is it?
0:54:55 > 0:54:59- No, no, you'll be quite surprised when you get there, I think. - Yeah?- Yeah.
0:55:02 > 0:55:03What are you going to have, then?
0:55:03 > 0:55:06I'm going to have my favourite - squirrel pie.
0:55:06 > 0:55:10I think I might just have a salad and a few nuts if that's all right?
0:55:10 > 0:55:11That's fine.
0:55:19 > 0:55:21What's it like, then?
0:55:21 > 0:55:23It's absolutely beautiful.
0:55:23 > 0:55:24You have to try this.
0:55:24 > 0:55:28This is that popular, it's going in the top restaurants in London.
0:55:28 > 0:55:30- Would you at least have a try?- No.
0:55:30 > 0:55:32No, I can't eat the cast.
0:55:32 > 0:55:35All right, well aside from the meat, you know,
0:55:35 > 0:55:37how effective has the project been?
0:55:37 > 0:55:40I mean, how many squirrels, not to put too fine a point on it,
0:55:40 > 0:55:41have you killed to date?
0:55:41 > 0:55:44To date, we're up to 25,171.
0:55:44 > 0:55:4825,171 squirrels?
0:55:48 > 0:55:49Yeah.
0:55:49 > 0:55:54Has it made any difference? That's the, that's the... I mean, at the end of the day,
0:55:54 > 0:55:56that's the key question, in terms of the reds.
0:55:56 > 0:55:59Just this morning, I was coming to check them here,
0:55:59 > 0:56:01this woman was running through the woods and stopped us
0:56:01 > 0:56:04and says, "I've seen a red." And I've never seen one
0:56:04 > 0:56:06and I've been running through here for years and years.
0:56:06 > 0:56:10And she was so excited, and there's a family of reds there, breeding.
0:56:10 > 0:56:13- So, basically, there were greys. - Yeah. - They've been eradicated.- Yeah.
0:56:13 > 0:56:17- And the reds have come back?- They've come back and started breeding.
0:56:17 > 0:56:18That's the difference for me.
0:56:18 > 0:56:22If people stop and say the reds are coming back, there is hope.
0:56:22 > 0:56:25To be quite honest, this problem is a man-made problem -
0:56:25 > 0:56:29we made this problem - and I think it's up to us to resolve it,
0:56:29 > 0:56:33otherwise, if we don't do anything this time, we're going to lose the reds.
0:56:33 > 0:56:35And that's the way I honestly feel.
0:56:35 > 0:56:38And on that note, I'm going to let you do your bit with your dish.
0:56:38 > 0:56:40Your squirrel's getting cold.
0:56:40 > 0:56:42I never thought I'd hear myself say that.
0:56:44 > 0:56:46Whatever you think of Paul's militancy
0:56:46 > 0:56:50and his irrepressible desire to eradicate grey squirrels,
0:56:50 > 0:56:53I'm sure that not many of you are surprised,
0:56:53 > 0:56:57because when it comes to these animals, there are few fence-sitters.
0:56:57 > 0:57:00People either love them or they loathe them.
0:57:00 > 0:57:05And perhaps, pragmatically, there's a good method afoot here,
0:57:05 > 0:57:08because he's kind of keeping a "no-man's land"
0:57:08 > 0:57:11between the bulk of the population of greys down there in the south
0:57:11 > 0:57:16and what remains of the reds, over there, to the north.
0:57:18 > 0:57:21It is true that, as far as red squirrels are concerned,
0:57:21 > 0:57:25Britain simply isn't the place that it used to be.
0:57:25 > 0:57:31But thanks to their small size, these magical animals have every chance of clinging on
0:57:31 > 0:57:34in the UK's northern pine forests...
0:57:34 > 0:57:38especially as the human population value them so much.
0:57:40 > 0:57:46You know, it's pretty amazing that there are so many woodland animals still here,
0:57:46 > 0:57:50given the massive reduction in the amount of habitat that they've got.
0:57:50 > 0:57:55It's worth remembering that our local woods, hedgerows
0:57:55 > 0:57:58and even gardens are all potential homes for them.
0:58:01 > 0:58:05And having seen Britain from the woodland animals' point of view,
0:58:05 > 0:58:10it certainly strikes me that, with a little bit more human thought,
0:58:10 > 0:58:15we could improve all of these places for a lot more of these creatures.
0:58:17 > 0:58:22Next time, our coastal animals have their say.
0:58:22 > 0:58:24Prepare yourself for great cuteness.
0:58:24 > 0:58:27What do they make of our seaside activities?
0:58:27 > 0:58:30Ouch! It's my finger, not the chip.
0:58:30 > 0:58:33And why do so many prefer these islands to anywhere else?
0:58:33 > 0:58:36Well, I'll show you. Come with me.
0:58:46 > 0:58:49Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:49 > 0:58:52E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk