A LEADING North East nature organisation has marked its half-century by unveiling its 50th nature reserve.
Durham Wildlife Trust has acquired a 300-acre site in upper Teesdale as part of its “50@50” campaign which aimed to grow the trust’s number of nature reserves from 42 to 50 by the end of its 50th anniversary year.
Its latest acquisition, which will be known as Cuthbert’s Moor, means that the trust has reached that target.
Cuthbert’s Moor is an area of upland moorland, between Middleton-in-Teesdale and Aukside.
A designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), it is home to a variety of species, including curlew, snipe, meadow pipits, skylark, common lizard, and stoat.
It is the first nature reserve of its kind that Durham Wildlife Trust has acquired. The trust will spend the next year surveying the site and its wildlife to inform its long-term nature recovery plans.
Durham Wildlife Trust director Jim Cokill, said: “In the summer of 2020, Durham Wildlife Trust launched its 50@50 campaign and set a target of growing the number of wild spaces we manage to 50 by the end of summer 2022.
“It was an ambitious goal, but to restore nature we need to be ambitious, and by acquiring Cuthbert’s Moor we have achieved it.
“People now value wildlife more than ever and there’s growing understanding of just how important the natural world is to modern society.
“Nature will form part of any solution to the climate crisis; if we don’t take action to restore wildlife, we won’t stop climate change.
“That can only happen if people want it to happen, but the generosity of our supporters shows that people do indeed want to see nature restored.”
Mark Dinning, head of conservation at the trust, added: “Cuthbert’s Moor is a substantial new acquisition.
“At just over 100 hectares, it a small but impressive piece of the much wider North Pennines upland moorland habitats.
“The trust is looking forward to unlocking the biodiversity potential of Cuthbert’s Moor and implementing important plans for nature’s recovery.
“This is an area that is truly representative of the climate and nature crisis, with potential to store carbon and support populations of species in fast decline.”
He said: “Bringing a wider understanding to the ecological potential and the benefits of restoration practices on Cuthbert’s Moor will be vital in securing a future for wildlife across all UK landscapes.”
