Christmas has come early for a wildlife charity after it was gifted a piece of land on the border of Northumberland National Park to create the county's newest nature reserve.
The Haining, near the village of Elsdon, has been donated to Northumberland Wildlife Trust after its previous owners had already attempted to make it a haven for wildlife. For the last decade, they have planted large areas of trees, creating a woodland to stand alongside hay meadows which are home to plants such as yellow rattle and common spotted orchards.
And now, the charity has "ambitious" plans to develop the site's wildlife potential, with the first steps being their Estates Team staff and volunteers carrying out surveys to understand the site better and guide its future management. The team will also begin immediate management of the woodland including the removal on many tree tubes, which helped the woodland become established - and the site's ash trees which have died from ash dieback will be replaced with species such as oak and birch.
Read more: Warning as millions of Northumberland trees are dying due to disease 'nobody is talking about'
Currently, a range of species of butterflies and dragonflies can be spotted on the woodland edges and glades, while the ponds are home to a population of toads. The Elsdon Burn, to the reserve's northern boundary is home to otter, while barn owls can be seen hunting over the grassland at dawn and dusk.
As well as the natural element to the reserve, there is a modern house transformed from the old ruins of the Haining Farmhouse by the site's previous owners. The Trust intends to use it as a holiday let with the aim of generating a further income to help fund the management of the site, which is close to its existing Benshaw Moor Reserve.
Mike Pratt, Northumberland Wildlife Trust Chief Executive, said: "This amazing piece of land is a wildlife hotspot and one of the Trust’s most exciting acquisitions in the last 15 years. It is such a very generous gift not just to the Trust, but towards helping the restoration of nature across the wider landscape.
" We intend to enhance what has already been put in place here and widen its impact for conservation. It is a truly wonderful location and demonstrates on a small local scale what could be accomplished more widely at a bigger connected scale to bring nature back."
Where's your favourite place in the North East to escape into nature? Let us know!
Read next
-
Three North East hotels named among the Times Top 100 places to stay in 2023
-
Northumberland museum to host ice sculpture trail highlighting animals at risk from climate change
-
Northumberland National Park facing crisis after Government funding cuts
-
Council leader backs 'brilliant' Northumberland National Park amid funding concerns
