Moor the merrier: Volunteers hailed for conservation success

Members of the British Falconers’ Club have held a sporting tenancy for 12 years at Levisham Moor, near the Hole of Horcum.

Nearly the whole of the estate, which is owned by the park authority, is a protected Site of Special Scientific Interest and the majority also a Special Protection Area for merlin and golden plover.

The group’s management of the moor, including rotational burning and control of predators, has seen curlew, lapwing, skylark, meadow pipit and other moorland birds flourish.

Their efforts have now been recognised by a nomination in the 2011 Purdey Awards, an annual competition to find the UK’s best game conservation projects.

Julian Hepburn, of the Levisham Moor Group, said he was delighted that the small group of volunteers “giving their time, money and labour for nothing more than a deep love of the environment and wildlife” had achieved recognition.

“This nomination will raise public awareness towards the positive, active role which sportsmen such as falconers play in conserving and maintaining the environment and protecting wildlife,” he said.