Immortal bird

Volunteers and rangers are working to halt the alarming decline in nightingales in Hampshire by rewilding the habitat in Botley Woods

- Duncan Hall

It may not look much, but a certain small brown flying migrant from Africa has inspired both Romantic poets and musicians with its distinctive song.

But in recent years the numbers of nightingales in the UK has been in serious decline – with Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust reporting an 80 per cent drop in numbers since the 1980s. Now Hampshire Countryside Service is working closely with the trust, Forestry England and the National Grid to create a habitat in Botley Woods conducive to nightingales, with the hope of enticing migrating pairs back to the county this spring.

“Nightingales are groundnesting birds,” says Alex Foy, a ranger with the Hampshire Countryside Service based at Manor Farm in River Hamble Country Park. “They are quite secretive – they want a dense ground layer, which looks like a bit of a mess.”

To create this habitat teams of up to 60 volunteers have been taking part in layered coppicing sessions on the willow trees to create a dense green environment for the birds. “It’s quite damp, tough hard work in the undergrowth,” says Alex. “When it starts regrowing it will look lush and green.”