As a new study on mountain hares hit the news, we thank GWCT member Matthew Higgs for writing to the Telegraph to share our findings:
SIR - Recent daytime mountain-hare counts in the Peak District may be pessimistic. Counting at night, with special equipment, gamekeepers working with the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust found much higher hare densities of between 52 and 126 per square kilometre. This is similar to that found in their core range in Scotland. They were most numerous on keepered ground. The mountain hare faces threats from climate change, predators and road traffic. It would be a great pity if conservation organisations ignored the expertise of the shooting community, which returned the species to the Peak District in the 19th century and fosters it still.
Matthew Higgs
Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire