Trust’s appeal aims to restore Peak District wildlife habitats

Derbyshire Wildlife Trust has launched a new appeal which aims to raise £100,000 to restore and reconnect habitats in the Peak District.

The Wild Peak Appeal aims to help wildlife return while creating a more resilient landscape for people and nature.

According to the trust, across the Peak District, habitats are becoming increasingly degraded and fragmented, leaving wildlife with fewer places to feed, shelter and move.

As the region faces increasingly extreme weather, the trust believes restoring those “missing pieces” and creating more resilient landscapes through natural processes is becoming more urgent than ever.

It is hoping to raise £100,000 by 31 October to support work to restore and reconnect these habitats, not only helping create the conditions for wildlife to return and thrive, but also bringing wider benefits such as storing carbon, holding back water and improving water quality.

Derbyshire Wildlife Trust’s Wild Peak appeal is urging members, supporters and the public to back the campaign.

An example of disappearing wildlife from the Peak District’s moors is black grouse.

Species such as the red-backed shrike, once a common bird across the UK has also disappeared from landscapes.

And flowers that were once abundant in fields and meadows, like the maiden pink, are also becoming increasingly rare across the peak district landscape.

Joanna Hill, Wild Peak programme manager at Derbyshire Wildlife Trust, said: “The Peak District is a beautiful and much-loved landscape, but some of the wildlife that once belonged here is missing.

“The black grouse is a powerful symbol of that loss but it is also a reminder of what could be possible if we give nature the space and connections it needs to recover.

“We have an incredible opportunity to help nature recover across the Wild Peak, but we need to act now.

“Raising £100,000 by 31 October will help us make the most of this opportunity and start putting those missing pieces back.

“The appeal is about much more than bringing back individual species. By restoring habitats and reconnecting fragmented parts of the landscape, the project can help create more resilient habitats and better conditions for a much wider range of wildlife, while protecting the places people come to enjoy, explore and connect with nature.”

To support the Wild Peak Appeal and donate, click here.