Carter Jonas is backing a Government-backed biodiversity project to re-establish numbers of a native gamebird which was once prolific in the country’s farmland.

The Grey Partridge Recovery Project is run by The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust and this is the third year in which Carter Jonas has been a regional sponsor of groups and events in the eastern region (Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Suffolk and Bedfordshire) and the central region (Rutland, Northampton, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire and Buckinghamshire).

The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust is a lead partner for the grey partridge under the UK Government’s Biodiversity Action Plan. The Recovery Project sits within the Trust’s wider Partridge Count Scheme, which has marked its 75th anniversary this year and is one of the longest-running, farmer-led monitoring schemes in Europe.

The recovery project’s aim is to boost numbers of breeding pairs of grey partridge to 90,000 nationally by 2010 and expand the bird’s geographical range.

The regional groups – like those sponsored by Carter Jonas – are run by the Trust to provide a focus for farmers and landowners to learn about creating the ideal habitat in which to help the grey partridge survive and thrive in to the future.

Tim Jones, Head of the Rural Division of Carter Jonas, commented:

"Cereal fields are the primary habitat for grey partridge in this country. The revival of gamebirds such as the grey partridge is a testament that a balance between conservation and food production can be achieved by modern farming techniques and considered estate management."