News
Wednesday 20 April 2005
Student to embark on small mammal study
The conservation of small mammals in Britain could be given a boost thanks to research about to be undertaken by a Nottingham Trent University student. Anna Champneys, a BSc (Hons) Wildlife Conservation student, will investigate which hedgerows small mammals, such as mice, shrews and voles, prefer to inhabit and produce a report on her findings.
Anna, who will carry out the work at the university’s School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences, under the supervision of Dr Louise Cussen, is one of just five students nationwide who have been awarded a six-month internship from the Mammals Trust UK (MTUK). The charity raises funds for scientific research which aims to understand and solve many of the problems British mammals face today.
She will record the abundance and type of mammals found in particular hedges by using mammal-friendly traps, and infrared cameras to spot them at night. She will assign scores to hedges following the Hedgerow Evaluation Grading System depending on a range of factors including their length, shape, and position, and whether they have any gaps or ditches.
As well as small mammals living within the hedges, Anna will look for evidence of hedgerow use by larger mammals – such as stoats, weasels, foxes and hares – by searching for tracks and droppings.
Anna said: “Hedges are corridors which link together a range of different mammals’ habitats. We already know there’s an abundance of small mammals at the university's Brackenhurst campus but a study has never been done to uncover which hedgerow they prefer to inhabit and why this might be.”
She added: “We hope that in the future farmers and landowners will be able to use the results as a best practice conservation guide to encourage a greater number of mammals to their hedgerows.”
Nida Al-Fulaij, the Development Manager at MTUK, said: “The results of our interns’ projects are read with interest by the MTUK Advisory Group and summaries posted on our website. If any significant discoveries are reported, they will be passed on to the relevant experts.”
She said: “Anna’s project is particularly exciting as it focuses on a number of species, hedgerow mammals. The conservation of these small mammals is essential, and all information that can facilitate this is extremely useful.”
ENDS
Notes for editors: MTUK is the only charity solely dedicated to raising funds to help conserve all our native species.
For more information please contact:
Dave Rogers, Press Officer, on Tel: 0115 848 2650 or via email: dave.rogers@ntu.ac.uk
Or Therese Easom, Press and Media Relations Manager, on Tel: 0115 848 6589 or via email: therese.easom@ntu.ac.uk
