RARE bird populations are on the rise at Farnham Heath, the RSPB has revealed. The area, commonly known as the Bourne Woods, is subject to restoration work, with the RSPB "regenerating heath and woodland" since December 2004. Numbers of three of the key birds - woodlarks, tree pipits and singing nightjars - that the body is trying to help with its heathland restoration work are on the up. Woodlarks increased to five pairs, tree pipits to four, and there were two singing nightjars, up from last year's figures of four, two and one respectively. All were absent before the restoration work began. Yet the RSPB came under fire from the Forestry Commission in May, after being served with a formal enforcement notice following the erroneous felling of almost two hectares of larch trees at the site. Under the auspices of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations, the RSPB was tasked with restocking the area of woodland felled in error, provide mitigation land and defer Admitting that a "a genuine error had been made", the RSPB accepted the terms of enforcement, saying they were "deeply sorry" for the incident. The RSPB welcomed the news that the bird population was growing, with the news coming at the same time as a new national survey, which has found woodlark numbers in the UK have risen by 89 per cent in the last 10 years. This welcome rise has been driven by work to provide suitable habitat, including improvements to the size and condition of lowland heaths across southern England that are being made by a wide range of conservation organisations and individuals, and good management of forestry plantations. Nevertheless, existing heathlands still face major pressures, and opportunities to restore habitats that have been lost are still rare, which is why Farnham Heath is so special. The results of the woodlark survey, carried out by the BTO, RSPB, Natural England and the Forestry Commission (England), nevertheless still show them to be a rare bird, with an estimated 3,084 breeding pairs of woodlarks, compared with 1,633 pairs in 1997 and a low point of just 241 pairs in 1986. It was red-listed as a Species of Conservation Concern in the 1980s because of a drastic decline in its range over the preceding 20 years, which happened as its heathland habitat was lost throughout the UK. Mike Coates, project manager at Farnham Heath, said: "We are delighted with how quickly these rare birds are responding to our work at Farnham Heath. And they are just the tip of the iceberg – other rare heathland wildlife is returning too, with grayling butterflies being seen regularly and sand lizards have been seen twice, and the re-emerging heather buzzing with insects. "Sometimes in Surrey it is easy to lose sight of what a rare habitat heathland is because we see it every day, but we have lost about 85 per cent of all heathland in the UK in the last 200 years, and yet we still hold an incredible fifth of the entire world area. Heathland restoration projects such as this are one of the biggest conservation priorities." Natural England's senior ornithologist Allan Drewitt, said: "It is encouraging to see such a dramatic increase in the numbers and breeding range of woodlarks. This is largely the result of improvements to their lowland heathland habitats by conservation bodies including Natural England, the RSPB and local wildlife trusts, and the efforts of the Forestry Commission in providing and maintaining suitable nesting areas in their plantations. "The £25m Heritage Lottery funding of Tomorrow's Heathland Heritage has done a lot to help heathland species like the woodlark. "We must now increase our efforts to restore and manage lowland heaths for the woodlark and other wildlife, and also ensure that the management of forestry plantations continues to provide breeding habitats." Forestry Commission ecologist Jonathan Spencer said: "It is good news that the forest habitats and heathland creation we have developed in key areas have supported the woodlark population, enabling them to increase and return to more traditional habitats. "We are committed to working closely with partners such as the RSPB to support priority species, and for survey results like this to help guide us in our woodland and habitat management."