Wild New Forest - Projects
Overview
Over the last five years, Wild New Forest has developed an extensive portfolio of ecological survey and research projects in and around the New Forest National Park. In addition to various projects on the open forest, we are currently delivering ecological surveys across a large number of private sites covering several thousand acres (see map below). Most of our work comes via personal recommendation and referral, with a focus on public- and private-funded nature recovery and scientific research projects. We also provide conservation management advice that is tailored to the unique circumstances of the New Forest, e.g. conservation grazing with livestock provided by local commoners and farmers. Please note that we don't normally engage in projects relating to local planning applications and/or biodiversity net gain. As a not-for-profit our aim is to remain affordable to the widest range of landowners and partners.​​Examples of some of our recent projects are provided below, and if you are interested in working with us then please get in touch using the details at the bottom of the page.
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New Forest Species Survival Fund
Wild New Forest is a partner in a £1.3M Defra-funded Species Survival Fund project, targeting habitat creation and restoration on private land in the New Forest National Park. The role of Wild New Forest is to deliver ecological baseline surveys and post-intervention monitoring at up to 25 private sites in 2024-25, with further post-project monitoring in 2026-28. Initial surveys have already revealed the presence of several priority species that will benefit from planned habitat improvements, such as Pine Marten (pic below). Further details are available here.
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New Forest Southern Cluster
Wild New Forest is a partner in the New Forest Southern Cluster, which is co-ordinated by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust and brings together over 15 landowners around the southern and eastern fringes of the New Forest. In winter 2024/25 we are deploying 15 trail cameras across the cluster to better understand the mammal and bird assemblage, with a focus on elusive nocturnal species; this will inform future conservation action including habitat restoration / creation and deer management. This work is funded through the Defra Facilitation Fund and the Defra Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) programme.
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Ecological surveys - private sites
We conduct ecological surveys across a wide variety of private sites, from the 8000-acre Southwick Estate through to New Forest smallholdings of a couple of acres. Most of our private consultancy reports are commercial in confidence, but one example in the public domain is our multi-year monitoring of a conservation area at Green Hill Farm in the northern New Forest - the 2023 site biodiversity report is available here.
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Ecological survey and research - Crown Lands
We are a trusted partner of Forestry England and have recently conducted several ecological survey and research projects on the Crown Lands, with a view to informing forest management. Examples include a study commissioned by Forestry England in 2000 investigating the response of breeding waders to reduced recreational pressure during the COVID-19 lockdown. More recently, we conducted a two-year project in 2023-24 investigating the response of animals and fungi to heathland restoration at three sites, which complemented work by Footprint Ecology focussing on plants at these sites (a report on this work will be available soon).
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Climate change and the New Forest
In winter 2024/25 we won a competitive tender to lead a project for New Forest National Park Authority looking at state-of-the-art climate projections for the New Forest and the risks and opportunities associated with future climate change. This work sees us partnering with spatial mapping experts Maploom and draws upon our scientific expertise and local stakeholder connections. An additional project, funded through the Youth for Climate and Nature (YouCAN) scheme, will see us delivering educational materials relating to climate change impacts on New Forest habitats and species over the last three decades.
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SCC bird flightpath study
In winter 2024/25 we won a competitive tender to deliver a project for Southampton City Council, mapping bird flightpaths around the city using visual daytime surveys, supplemented by nocturnal imaging and acoustic recording. The project is led by our partners at Maploom and most of the fieldwork is being co-ordinated and delivered by our colleagues at Lullula Ecology - our role is to provide scientific oversight of survey methods and results.
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