Hamster op eigen benen (KD-2018-044) (BO-43-021.01-014, BO-11-019.01-010)

In the south of the Dutch Province Limburg is a remnant population of European Hamster (Common Hamster) still surviving, which is entirely dependent on several hundred acres of arable land with 'hamster-friendly' agricultural management. Preservation of the species is an international obligation related to the Habitats Directive, and nationally and internationally great effort has been put on a recovery of the species, through a breeding program that should provide hamsters for restocking, and by financial compensation of farmers deploying hamster-friendly management. The aim of the present project is to realise a substantial reduction in the cost per hectare of hamster-friendly agricultural management, by developing and applying of adjusted management packages on a larger surface, and evaluate best management practices both ecologically and economically. Future management packages should provide a better perspective for viable hamster populations in the Netherlands, and for fauna species related to arable fields in general.