KEEP IT WILD
SPECIES RECOVERY CENTRE
Keep it Wild (KIW) is an ambitious organisation driven to make a difference on the ground in the UK in the fight against the biodiversity crisis, climate change and creating a sustainable future for future generations.
Background
After making it clear that Britain is now one of the most nature diminished nations on earth the State of Nature Report 2023 makes it clear that “despite progress in ecosystem restoration, conserving species, and moving toward nature-friendly land and sea use, the UK’s nature and wider environment continues, overall, to decline and degrade”
The Species Restoration Centre
It very obvious that we are ill prepared to restore many of our lost, dwindling or otherwise threatened wildlife species at scale. While many conservation organisations are without doubt committed to doing so both the expertise required to achieve this end together with the creatures, we wish to return are generally unavailable. Many exciting projects in the UK are achieving landscape recovery, but will be inhibited without the rare and lost species required to bring those projects to their full potential. The Species Restoration Centre will collate these species into a central location, then build the captive breeding knowledge required to produce these creatures in quantity. This will allow us to deliver lost and rare species in volume to landscapes across the UK. This model has already been proven with water voles, 3000 of which are now produced annually for successful release in nature recovery projects across the UK.
To build on this success we are looking to establish around the infrastructure that already exists at the DG Cat Upcott Grange Farm in Devon a central hub for species restoration. The staff at the hub will build an expertise in breeding, caring for and releasing lost and endangered UK species. We will work with other major landowners collaboratively to create satellite breeding and release facilities operated under guidance of the Species Recovery Centre team. These satellite centres can then breed animals local to their potential release sites. The Species Restoration Centre which will focus on the development of the following;
The establishment of a pool of knowledge pertinent to the techniques required to keep, breed and propagate the broadest possible range of threatened native wildlife.
To identify a priority species list for captive breeding and from this secure the seed stock required to begin breeding projects.
To identify any collaboration as may be required with specialist breeders of threatened British wildlife species and to support their credible efforts to do so.
To provide where habitats remain or can be created, seed populations of the above to enable their restoration in a free-living state.
Species for breeding
The following species range will all be priority candidates for breeding at the Species Recovery Centre.
Water Voles
(Arvicola amphibious)
Wildcats
(Felis silvestris)
Adders
(Viper bera)
Black Grouse
(Lyrurus tetrix)
Turtle Doves
(Streptopelia turtur)
Corn Crakes
(Crex crex)
Red Backed Shrikes
(Lanius collurio)
Glowworms
(Lampyris noctiluca)
Mole Crickets
(Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa)
The Donor Request
KIW IS SEEKING: £ 120,000 P/A FOR A 4 YEAR PERIOD
Six individual donors are being sought who can provide £20K per year for the duration of the project.
Donors will be kept fully informed of progress via a quarterly news letter, and are free to visit at any time. Donors can share in the knowledge generated at the species recovery centre.
The funding will provide:
- Project Director (part time)
- Project Officer(full time)
- Full-time keeper with ornithological/herpetological and invertebrate skills
- Assistant keeper with the same
- Food, equipment costs, insurance and maintenance
TOTAL PER YEAR = £120,000