Kircubbin farmer is good for wildlife

Kircubbin farmer is good for wildlife

10 December 2014

A KIRCUBBIN farmer’s dedication to helping wildlife has been formally recognised.

Tony Bell was the only farmer from Co. Down to make the finals of the Farming Life’s Wildlife Friendly Farmer of the Year category sponsored by the RSPB.

He farms winter wheat, spring barley and spring oilseed rape, with his farm located just outside the village providing habitat for a wide range of bird species.

They include priority seed eaters like yellowhammer, linnet, reed bunting, tree sparrow and skylark, which all breed and spend the winter on Tony’s land.

These species have declined in many parts of the country in recent years, due to a loss of food sources and suitable habitat.

Tony provides much needed food for these species during the cold weather by leaving his spring sown barley fields as stubble over this lean period.

“Farming in a way that can help wildlife is very important to me,” he said.

“To see a wide range of birds and other wildlife using a productive working farm makes me proud. It was a fantastic experience to make it to the final of the competition.”

During these hard winter months, anything farmers can do for wildlife can make a huge difference.

Maintaining over-wintered stubbles until March will help provide seed food for birds over the harsh months and creating farmland bird feeding stations — areas where waste grain is placed for birds to feast on — will help ensure many birds make it through to spring.