Liqun Luo

gone. “If we can give them enough space and the right conditions, we could see these species rise once again to the kind of numbers that will give them a chance to cope with change and adversity,” says Geoff Findlay, environment councillor for the district. In the last 200 years, the area has been dramatically changed by the canal, the railway, farming practices, military use and mineral extraction. It also has a wealth of history, as does much of Britain, from social and military interest to ancient archaeology and geology. And the council is keen to encourage people to the site and expand it. The council hopes over the next 30 years to extend this ‘living landscape’ by at least 400 hectares. “Landscape-scale conservation is bigger and broader than traditional conservation management of small, fragmented pockets of wildlife sites,” says Philippa Lyons, chief executive of the local wildlife trust. “People have shaped the landscape in the past, and are now an important part in securing the future of wildlife in the area.” conservation project for the benefit of both wildlife and local people. Awareness is growing that, in order to best protect wildlife in heavily populated areas, the creation of links between nature reserves offers the greatest chance of helping species thrive. Such projects will form the basis of new plans elsewhere to better protect wildlife in challenging environments. The West Berkshire Living Landscape has been conceived by the local wildlife trust. The plan is to expand the range of natural species in the area to increase the numbers within individual species. The aim is to give species the best possible chance to adapt to and survive the pressures of human development and the uncertainties of climate change. The heathland at Greenham is on top of a flat gravel plateau running from west to east. It is surrounded by wooded escarpments, with alder-lined gullies, running down to wetland river valleys. But species numbers have dwindled. A number of species once common in the area are now threatened or Thriving: Closure of the Greenham Common base has let to an innovative conservation project that has proved home to rare species such as the Dartford warbler. (Picture: Mike Lane/Alamy.) Liqun Luo