AHW3: Beetle banks

The following changes have been made to this action for SFI26 (compared with the SFI24 version):

• you can now put all or part of a parcel's available area into this action – this only applies to SFI26 agreements, not existing SFI23 and SFI24 agreements
• minor updates to standard wording which appears in all area-based SFI actions

This action’s aim is that there’s an in-field raised grassy bank, with tussocky grass allowed to develop.

The purpose of this is to:

• provide nesting and foraging habitats for ground-nesting birds, small mammals and insects
• help slow down or stop soil erosion
• support an integrated pest management approach if located close to cropped areas

What you must do

You must establish an in-field beetle bank by:

• creating a raised earth ridge
• sowing a mixture of fine-leaved grasses, such as red fescue, together with some tussock forming varieties like tall fescue, timothy and cocksfoot

You can leave gaps of up to around 40m at each end of the beetle bank to allow machinery access.

Once the grassy mix on the beetle bank is established, you must maintain it in a way that can reasonably be expected to achieve this action’s aim.

You must not apply:

• any fertilisers, manures or lime
• apply pesticides, except for herbicides to weed wipe or spot treat to control injurious weeds, invasive non-native species, nettles or bracken

You can maintain an existing beetle bank to get paid for this action if it:

• meets this action’s requirements
• is not already being paid for under another environmental land management scheme option, such as Countryside Stewardship option AB3 (beetle banks)

When to do it

You must:

• establish the beetle bank within 12 months of this action’s start date
• maintain the beetle bank throughout each subsequent year of this action’s duration

Where you can do it

You can do this action on agricultural land located below the moorland line that’s:

• an eligible land type (as defined in section 5.1.1 ‘Eligible land types’ in the SFI26 scheme information)
• registered with an eligible land cover on your digital maps
• declared with a land use code which is compatible with the eligible land cover

Rotational or static

This action is static. This means you must do it at the same location each year of this action’s duration.

Evidence to keep

You must keep evidence to show what you’ve done to complete this action, such as:

• field operations at a land parcel level and associated invoices
• photographs or other documentation

If it’s not clear that you’ve done this action in a way that could reasonably be expected to achieve its aim, we may ask for this evidence. You must supply the evidence if we ask for it.