Wild Grey Partridges to take off in Northern Ireland
Twenty-nine wild grey partridges from the Republic of Ireland have been handed over to Northern Ireland to kick-start a project which aims to re-establish a wild population in the six-counties. The species was declared extinct in Northern Ireland in 1992.
The project is a joint initiative between the National Parks & Wildlife Service (NPWS), Department of Arts Heritage & Gaeltacht, and Northern Ireland Environmental Agency. Mr David Sandford, a grey partridge enthusiast from Lecale, County Down will spear head the operation in NI. According to Mr Sandford wild 
grey partridges were common on his fathers’ farm thirty-five years ago. “Obviously agriculture has changed, over those years, so we must address the underlying issue of habitat loss – this is just one of our key objectives.”
Mr Sandford has also secured the support of neighbouring farms, where changes to farming practices will be made possible under the Countryside Stewardship Scheme. These changes will involve an integration of food production while facilitating measures to enhance the conservation status of farmland birds like the grey partridge.