Sheep herded with special collars to protect birds

Grazing sheep are being fitted with collars to help them create nesting environments for threatened birds.

RSPB Geltsdale in Cumbria is trialling the use of Nofence collars, which alert sheep when they leave designated areas.

This keeps them grazing within "invisible" fences, where the animals can create clear spaces for ground-nesting birds to live.

The RSPB said it was "encouraging" to see birds already nesting in areas where the collared sheep had been grazing.

The flock of 22 Herdwick sheep are owned by Ian Bell, a farmer at Tarnhouse Farm, who said he wanted to manage the land to create a "mosaic of habitats" for wildlife.

“Herdwicks are notorious escape artists and certain individuals have a complete disregard for field boundaries. However, we have managed to train the sheep to go exactly where we want them to," he said.

"The technology appears to be better than a stone wall."

Nofence collars worked by triggering an "electric non-harmful pulse" when the sheep left their designated area, the RSPB said.

The charity said the device also emitted an audio warning before the shock, and the animals soon learned to listen to the cue.

The sheep began grazing a 26-acre (0.1 sq-km) Nofence area in February and have now left the site.

Curlew, lapwings and skylarks have since been seen nesting in the space.

The birds prefer to nest in clear areas, as it allows them to see predators such as foxes and crows.

"Already these birds are nesting, sitting on their eggs, so this is encouraging to see, and the first Lapwing chicks are expected in the next couple of weeks," RSPB Geltsdale warden Ian Ryding said.

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