Rare bush cricket conservation near Bognor gets £1,500 boost from housing developers
A conservation charity has received £1,500 to help monitor one of Britain’s rarest crickets, with funding linked to a new housing development near Bognor
Conservation charity Buglife has received a £1,500 donation from Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes to support efforts to protect one of the UK’s rarest insects in the Sussex South Downs.
The funding will cover three days of monitoring work following the reintroduction of the rare wart-biter bush cricket, helping conservationists assess how populations are faring in suitable habitats.
The donation is linked to the housebuilders’ Ryebank Gate development in Yapton, where the companies have also encouraged residents to support local wildlife through a Buzzing Gardens Competition.
The competition invited residents to create wildlife-friendly gardens providing food and shelter for pollinating insects and birds.
Buglife said monitoring was an important part of conservation efforts to strengthen populations of the rare cricket, which is the focus of ongoing work across the Sussex South Downs.
Paul Hetherington, Director of Fundraising and Communications at Buglife, said: “Wart-biter bush crickets are a brilliant example of why insect conservation matters. They’re rare, easily overlooked, and yet they’re an important part of the habitats they live in.
"Getting these crickets back into suitable areas is only part of the job, we also need to keep an eye on how those populations are doing, which is why monitoring is so important. The support from Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes allows us to carry out this work on the ground.
“Funding three days of monitoring means our team can continue building a clearer picture of how these rare crickets are getting on in the South Downs.”
Phil Hurring, Marketing Manager at Barratt David Wilson Southern Counties, added: “Biodiversity is an important part of creating successful, sustainable communities, and there is a real opportunity for our developments to support wildlife both though the spaces we create and by encouraging residents to get involved.
“At Ryebank Gate, our Buzzing Gardens Competition gave residents the chance to think about how their own gardens could provide food and shelter for insects and birds, while our support for Buglife is helping fund practical conservation work for a species that is much rarer and less visible.
"Together, these initiatives are part of a wider effort to understand the wildlife around our developments and find practical ways to support it.”
The contribution was made through the Barratt Redrow Foundation, the housebuilders’ charitable organisation.