A recent BBC news story ‘Baby dormice found at reserve for first time‘ highlights the positive and valuable work carried out by many landowners throughout the County to encourage and protect our native species.

‘Fortunately, here in east Devon we have good dormouse populations and as long as woodlands, hedgerows and scrubby grounds are maintained and allowed to exist and treated carefully, dormice do particularly well in our county.’

So whilst in managed environments nature is thriving, Keep Britain Tidy estimate that ‘around four million small mammals – shrews and mice that are essential members of our ecosystems, die every year imprisoned in littered bottles and cans’ particularly on our road verges.

So litter picking is not just about tidying up, but as valuable in improving our environment as the dedication of those landowners and gardeners providing safe habitats for our endangered and native species.

Every bottle or can removed from our countryside, road verges and hedges has the potential to save countless inquisitive lives of small animals, like the poor dormouse pictured above from an East Devon lane. It’s easy to get involved.

Litter doesn’t just kill once.

If you see litter (that you can’t remove yourself) or fly tipping (don’t try to remove that due to potential risks), report it.