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25-550: Vincent Weir was the younger son of Andrew Weir, second Baron Inverforth . He was educated at Malvern College and on leaving school, Vincent joined the family firm, the Andrew Weir Group. In 1975, Vincent established Vincent Wildlife Trust to focus initially on the status of the otter. Other species the Trust has been or is involved with include the water vole , dormouse , stoat , weasel , polecat , pine marten and

50-466: A baseline map of potential ecological corridors to connect lesser horseshoe bat sub-populations. The European polecat population in Britain declined following widespread predator control, particularly in the late 19th century. Today, it has recolonised much of its former range. In order to gauge the extent of this range expansion, the Trust has carried out three national polecat distribution surveys since

75-432: A level of recovery in Britain's otter population between the first round of surveys in the late 1970s and the third round in the early 1990s. The Trust carried out the first and second national water vole surveys in 1989-1990 and 1996–98. These surveys identified the crash in the water vole population in Britain. Following the publication of the first survey, the water vole was given a degree of legal protection in 1998 under

100-544: A period of more than 25 years. Today, the Trust still manages 36 horseshoe bat roosts in Britain and Ireland and this also includes, in Wales, the largest known maternity colony of lesser horseshoe bats in western Europe. Much of the Trust's bat research has focused on the lesser horseshoe bat , including a number of radio-tracking studies. Population studies include detailed surveys of the lesser horseshoe bat in Ireland. In 2008,

125-516: The 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act. In 2008, a greater level of protection was given in England and Wales. The long-term decline of the water vole resulted from a loss of habitat and changes in farming practices, but the acceleration in the rate of this decline in the 1980s was down to increasing predation by feral American mink. The status of the water vole is now monitored annually by the PTES through

150-411: The 1990s. The fourth national polecat survey was launched at the beginning of January 2024. The Trust has carried out research to further understanding of the ecology of the polecat, including live trapping, radio-tracking, investigation of secondary rodenticide poisoning, and genetic analysis of hybridisation between polecats and ferrets. By the early part of the 20th century, the pine marten in Britain

175-685: The Development Phase of National Lottery Heritage Fund project – Martens on the Move, which was granted funding for a four-year project to work with local communities to help the long-term survival of pine martens and to ensure gene flow between the new populations, and their expansion across the counties. This has been made possible thanks to the Players of the National Lottery. The Irish sub-species of stoat occurs all over Ireland and

200-659: The EU Recovery Instrument Funding under the Rural Development Programme 2014-2022. The project has provided new and permanent summer roosting sites for the species in lowland locations within the Mulkear River Catchment and raised awareness of the important role that farmers play in its conservation. The new roosts are located on farms within a few kilometres of waterways or woodlands that will, in time, increase

225-636: The House of Lords , were offered a life peerage to allow them to continue to sit in the House, should they wish. Peers in the Peerage of Scotland and Peerage of Ireland did not have an automatic seat in the House of Lords following the Acts of Union of 1707 and 1800 , though the law permitted a limited number to be elected by their fellows to serve in the House of Lords as representative peers . Some peerages of

250-580: The Isle of Man and occur in most habitats with sufficient cover, including urban areas, for example rat-infested rubbish dumps. However, studies have shown that they occur most often in wooded areas, and readily climb trees. VWT Ireland launched a two-year Irish Stoat Citizen Science Surveyin February 2023, which calls for sightings of the native mammal. It is the first systematic survey of the Irish stoat throughout

275-630: The National Water Vole Monitoring programme and is based on those sites originally surveyed by the trust. The Trust became involved in bat conservation in Britain and Ireland in the 1980s, providing information and advice and helping to set up the network of county Bat Groups that still exists today. In 1980, the Trust purchased a farm building in Devon that is now home to the largest known maternity colony of greater horseshoe bats in western Europe. Roost acquisition continued over

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300-473: The Trust published The Lesser Horseshoe Bat Conservation Handbook, a practical guide to the management of lesser horseshoe bat roosts. In 2021, following the discovery of a small colony of breeding greater horseshoe bats in a derelict stable in West Sussex —the first record in 100 years in southeast England, Vincent Wildlife Trust launched an appeal in partnership with Sussex Bat Group to raise funds to buy

325-465: The United Kingdom were automatically members of the House of Lords. However, from that date, most of the hereditary peers ceased to be members, whereas the life peers retained their seats. All hereditary peers of the first creation (i.e. those for whom a peerage was originally created, as opposed to those who inherited a peerage), and all surviving hereditary peers who had served as Leader of

350-973: The United Kingdom were created to get around this obstacle and allow certain Scottish and Irish peers to enjoy the automatic right to sit in the House of Lords The ranks of the peerage are Duke , Marquess , Earl , Viscount , and Baron . The last non-royal dukedom was created in 1874, and the last marquessate was created in 1936. Creation of the remaining ranks, except baronies for life , mostly ceased once Harold Wilson 's Labour government took office in 1964 , and only thirteen (nine non-royal and four royal) people have been created hereditary peers since then. These were: Marquesses, earls, viscounts and barons are all addressed as 'Lord X', where 'X' represents either their territory or surname pertaining to their title. Marchionesses, countesses, viscountesses and baronesses are all addressed as 'Lady X'. Dukes and duchesses are addressed just as 'Duke' or 'Duchess' or, in

375-493: The autumn of 2015 and their progress monitored through an intensive radio-tracking programme. Further translocations took place in 2016 and 2017 bringing the total to just over 50 animals. These animals continue to be monitored using radio tracking, remote cameras and volunteers collecting scats. Between 2017 and 2020, VWT ran a pine marten project, as part of the national Back from the Brink project. This project monitored and paved

400-484: The building and to turn it into a suitable maternity roost for this rare species. The appeal was successful and the bats have a chance to once again thrive in part of their former ranges. VWT's Horseshoes Heading East, a partnership project with funding from Natural England's Species Recovery programme, aims to create a viable population of greater horseshoe bats in southeast England through a combination of roost creation and habitat enhancement. Improving connectivity across

425-462: The chances of this species being able to connect with colonies in other areas of Limerick and reduce the risk of inbreeding. VWT Ireland has also carried out a modelling study funded by National Parks and Wildlife Service during 2020 to investigate gaps in the distribution of the lesser horseshoe bat in Ireland over its entire range. The study incorporates datasets on land cover, roads, linear habitat features and density of artificial lighting to produce

450-471: The current work of VWT. Read its Ten-Year Strategy, which underpins the current direction of VWT’s work. National otter surveys of England, Scotland and Wales began in 1977, with the VWT covering Scotland. In the 1980s, VWT again surveyed Scotland and also Wales and Ireland. In the early 1990s, the VWT also took over the surveying of England. The surveys relied on searching for otter spraints . The surveys recorded

475-602: The five Peerages in the United Kingdom . It comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Acts of Union in 1801, when it replaced the Peerage of Great Britain . New peers continued to be created in the Peerage of Ireland until 1898 (the last creation was the Barony of Curzon of Kedleston ) The House of Lords Act 1999 reformed the House of Lords . Until then, all peers of

500-737: The island of Ireland. The survey was created in partnership with the National Biodiversity Data Centre, the Centre for Environmental Data and Recording in Northern Ireland and University of Galway. Baron Inverforth Baron Inverforth , of Southgate in the County of Middlesex, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom . It was created in 1919 for the Scottish shipping magnate Andrew Weir . He

525-408: The landscape and linking maternity sites to improve the breeding success of this rare and iconic species. The project will also support other rare bat species such as the greater mouse-eared bat and the grey long-eared bat. In Ireland, VWT Ireland's Lesser Horseshoe Bat Conservation Project was an EIP (European Innovation Partnership) project that was administered by Mulcair Catchment Ltd and funded by

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550-437: The rarer species of bats in Britain, notably the horseshoe bats , Bechstein's bat and barbastelle and in Ireland, the lesser horseshoe bat . Vincent Wildlife Trust's Vision is that the Trust is a catalyst for mammal conservation. Its Mission is to conserve threatened mammals by leading the way with scientifically sound conservation work. Survey and monitoring, research, education, training and advocacy together represent

575-615: The way for the recovery of the pine marten in northern England as the population spreads south from Scotland. In 2016, VWT began working with Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust and Forestry England to reintroduce pine martens to the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley in Gloucestershire. A total of 35 pine martens were translocated from Scotland to the Forest of Dean between 2019 and 2021. Between May 2022 and May 2023, VWT carried out

600-529: Was confined to the Northwest Highlands of Scotland and isolated pockets of the uplands of northern England and Wales. The Trust has been researching and surveying Britain's pine marten population for 30 years, monitoring the population and developing survey methods, including the use of DNA analysis. In 2015, the Trust's Pine Marten Recovery Project began the translocation of pine martens from Scotland to mid Wales. Twenty martens were translocated in

625-540: Was head of the firm of Andrew Weir & Co, shipowners, and also served as Minister of Munitions from 1919 to 1921. As of 2014 the title is held by his great-grandson, the fourth Baron, who succeeded his father in 1982. The heir apparent is the present holder's son, Hon. Benjamin Andrew Weir (b. 1997). Peerage of the United Kingdom The Peerage of the United Kingdom is one of

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