Habitat management of buffer zones can help save the reds, and huge amounts of work are being undertaken and progress being made in this area through the Save Our Squirrels organisation.

Squirrels are woodland animals and both red and grey squirrels are tree-dwelling mammals that rely on similar food sources. Although they both occupy the same ecological niche, they are nevertheless two different species. In particular, differences in their digestive systems cause problems.

The grey squirrel is able to digest large seeds even when they are not fully ripe. These seeds, such as acorn and hazelnut, tend to grow in broadleaved and mixed woodland. Red squirrels can survive better where there are large areas of spruce dominated coniferous woodland, as small seeded conifers are less favoured by grey squirrels.  However, single species plantations of Sitka spruce only support low densities of red squirrels meaning that alterations to habitat management to encourage a mixture of tree species can be beneficial. In large areas of spruces and conifers, reds and greys can co-exist, as for instance in many parts of Scotland where the native Caledonian pine forests and large Sitka spruce dominate conifer plantations. However there are instances in broadleaved and mixed woodland where red squirrels are unlikely to survive for more than fifteen to twenty years after the introduction of grey squirrels.

Tree felling however has been detrimental to the security of the red squirrel and has led to isolated red squirrel populations. Tree felling is especially damaging between February and July as this is red squirrel breeding season. Continuity of habitat is vital to red squirrels as the loss of hedgerow links between woodlands can result in the isolation of red squirrel populations from each other and food sources. The English, Scottish and Welsh Forestry Commissions’ Woodland Grant Schemes operate to coordinate the maintenance of Great Britain’s Woodlands to provide various public benefits including protection of the red squirrels.

The UK Red Squirrel Group (UKRSG) and Red Alert North East have done tremendous amounts of work in the area of habitat management and raising awareness about the plight of the native red squirrel.  The UKRSG is currently mid-way through a two year scoping study to survey the population of red squirrels in the UK, with comprehensive results to be published in 2007. The UKRSG also works to identify ‘Priority Woodlands’ for red squirrels, with the Kielder Forest being the most successful example of a managed habitat.

The Kielder forest is the largest man made forest in the UK specifically managed for the red squirrel, and is managed by the Forestry Commission. The forest stretches from the Scottish Borders to County Durham and is 200 square miles of man-made conifer forest and plantation. Sitka spruce is the main species at Kielder, as it is most suited to the hostile upland environment, accounting for ¾ of the forest area. In addition there is 12% Norway Spruce, 9% lodgepole pine and a small proportion of Scots pine, larch and broadleaf. An expansion of planting natural broadleaf will see the percentage of hardwoods rise at Kielder from 1% of the original forest to 8% by 2020.

According to the Forestry Commission such reserves need to be ideally separated by a buffer zone of 1-3km wide. This means that large areas of Northumberland fall into this category in order to protect the Kielder forest. The Forestry Commission advises that this area should consist of unsuitable habitat for greys such as conifer forest, broadleaved woodland of small-seeded species, arable land or moorland.

It had been assumed that the terrain in Northumberland was sufficiently inhospitable to greys so as to prevent their spread through to the Kielder forest. This however has been proved a false assumption, and the grey population is growing in Northumberland. For this reason, more needs to be done in addition to habitat management to protect the red squirrel.