Conserving landscapes, changing lives

Dartmoor National Park is a protected landscape that people come to enjoy, but it is fragile and needs to be cared for.

Dartmoor is an important reserve for some very rare plants and animals and is home to over 50% of Britain’s population of several globally threatened species.

 

Junior Rangers

 

Helping wildlife thrive is important, it requires concerted effort over many years, working with people who manage and farm the land.

Dartmoor provides an important stronghold for otters, a globally threatened and protected species. The otter has made a comeback on Dartmoor over the past 15 years and the area now supports nationally important populations of this well known and loved mammal.

 

Invasive skunk cabbage clogging up a stream

 

At the end of the summer, the sculptures will be auctioned off to raise funds to support conservation projects in the National Park, namely:

•    Dealing with invasive non-native species. These are a significant threat to wildlife habitats and species globally and on Dartmoor. Many are associated with the water environment and spread along rivers and streams. Dartmoor forms the headwaters of seven major river catchments in the south-west. We will work with local communities and volunteers to address this threat. This will benefit the streams and rivers, wetland habitats and the species, including otters, which depend on these habitats.

•    Our Junior Ranger programme for 13-16 year olds. This develops young people through a variety of conservation work experiences, including ‘hard skills’ – such as the correct way to fell a tree with hand-tools, as well as soft-skills – developing teamwork, self-confidence and resilience.

•    Repairing 9km of erosion on highly used parts of the moor. The increasing popularity of some parts of the open moor has caused severe erosion in places. We will repair 9km of the most heavily used areas to restore and maintain them for all to enjoy.