SKYLARK numbers are soaring in the region thanks to sensitive land management by a county council.

Although the popular farmland bird is known to be declining nationally, hundreds of skylarks are thriving on flower-rich grassland along the east Durham coast.

With help from the Countryside Stewardship scheme, Durham County Council is managing its land in an environmentally friendly way, which is encouraging the return of the once common species.

Skylark recovery has been especially successful on land that formed part of the Turning the Tide project, where a long stretch of the coastline has been cleaned up over a number of years.

The authority has established more than 180 hectares of flower-rich grassland, which is ideal for skylarks, providing food and cover for nesting sites.

Since the start of spring, skylark numbers on the coastal grasslands have risen substantially.

Ian Armstrong, the county's community wildlife officer, said: "To see and hear the skylark in such numbers is an uplifting experience.

"Thanks to Countryside Stewardship, which has given us the opportunity to establish wildflowers, and through appropriate mowing, we now have hundreds of skylarks, not just the odd one or two that you tend to find on more intensively managed agricultural land.

"People can now see skylarks in the numbers that used to be common 40 or 50 years ago and we hope to continue our work on other sites inland where skylarks and many other species will benefit."

Nationally, skylark numbers have declined by more than 54 per cent since 1969, largely due to intensive agricultural methods that have reduced weeds and insects that the birds feed on.

Flower-rich pastures have also been converted to intensive rye grass or arable crops, and the early cutting of fields for silage also contributed to the skylark's demise.

The bird's return in the region was warmly welcomed yesterday by the RSPB, whose conservation officer Anna Moody said: "It is great that the skylark has been able to benefit from the work done by Durham County Council.

"Skylark populations have suffered significant declines over the past few decades through the intensive management of grassland and the switch from spring to winter-sown cereals which reduces the amount of available nesting habitat in the spring.

"The creation of flower rich grasslands along the east Durham coast is clearly helping stem the decline of this charismatic bird."