Ulster Wildlife welcomes the publication today of the research paper "Habitat mediates coevolved but not novel species interactions" by Queens University Belfast and University of St Andrew's researchers in the 'Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences' journal, which has demonstrated how non-native conifer plantations¹ affect predation of red squirrels by pine martens in comparison to predation effects in native broadleaf woodlands.

This research emphasises how policies and strategies that focus on planting of non-native conifer woodland will be detrimental to recovery of our iconic red squirrels, and the role forestry strategies can have in red squirrel conservation.  This yet again shows how crucial it is that strategies such as Northern Ireland's 'Forests for Our Future' programme focus on restoring and creating native broadleaf woodlands to provide wildlife-rich habitats as well as tackling the climate crisis by locking away carbon.

We have been working closely with the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) and other stakeholders to produce the first Red Squirrel Conservation Strategy for Northern Ireland which focuses on the need for landscape-scale habitat restoration and native woodland to secure the long-term future of red squirrels in NI.  

¹Non-native conifer plantations are planted forests made up of conifer trees not native to the island of Ireland. Sitka spruce is the most predominant species used in forestry plantations. These forests are poor in biodiversity for native wildlife, and are often “clear-felled” i.e. large sections are felled all at once. These woodlands are a major component of the forestry industry in the UK and Ireland. Non-native conifer plantations make up a majority of NI’s woodlands (NI State of Nature Report 2019).