Badger Survey Berkshire
What are Badger surveys?
Badger surveys are used for determining whether or not badgers and active badger setts are present within proximity of potential construction or development sites.
As badgers are a protected species, badger surveys may be required to support planning applications to gain planning permission if there are signs of badgers in the area. The local planning authorities may notify you if a badger survey is required.
The Protection of Badgers Act 1992 protects badgers and their setts. Under this legislation, it is illegal to disturb a badger while using its sett. Sett interference is also illegal, and this includes damaging, destroying, or obstructing access to a sett.
Types of badger survey
There are two types of badger surveys which can be undertaken to detect badger activity. These are standard badger surveys and badger bait marking surveys.
Standard badger surveys – A standard badger survey involves recording any field signs of badgers, such as setts, paths, or footprints. If a badger sett is discovered, monitoring of the sett may be required to find out if it is being used by badgers.
Badgers may be observed around their setts at night using infra-red video surveillance technology. This can provide evidence of badgers, as well as giving an estimation of population sizes.
Badger bait marking surveys – Badgers use dung pits to mark their territories; ecologists study these areas to determine the territorial boundaries of badger social groups. Ecologists place harmless plastic pellets into badger bait foods, such as peanuts and syrup, which are visible in the badger’s droppings.
The plastic pellets are placed at each sett with different assigned colours. This provides us with an understanding of these social groups by examining the colours of the pellets in the dung pits.
Badger surveys can be carried out at anytime of the year but in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire the best time to survey for badgers is between autumn and late winter, to early spring as badgers are more active during this time.
Badger Survey Berkshire: How Can Collington Winter Assist?
Collington Winter Environmental is a Landscape Architecture and Ecology consultancy with an experienced team of Ecologists. We provide a highly professional badger surveys service to developers on all types of projects. Our Ecology Director, Olivia Collington, holds Natural England Badger Survey and Mitigation licences, and has worked with protected species across the UK, undertaking ecology surveys and writing scientific, readable reports for submission at planning.
Please get in touch with our Ecology Director Olivia Collington (Olivia.collington@collingtonwinter.co.uk) for more information on protected species surveys (such as in relation to Bats or Great Crested Newts) and mitigation. We also provide ecological appraisal and assessment services.
Our Director Jane Winter also provides landscape architecture services.
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