This comprehensive distribution atlas has been published four years after the lauch of the Atlas Project. The Cornwall Mammal Group (CMG) began by working towards filling in some of the gaps through targeted surveys, appeals for records and encouraging the collation of existing records. The Group also wanted to produce a book which went further than just a series of maps and wanted to use the opportunity to educate and entertain anyone with an interest in natural history and encourage them to find out about some of our more intriguing wildlife.
The atlas is a starting point, providing a baseline against which to measure change; perhaps as a consequence of climate change or development. It also gives us some ideas about how to target our survey work – where to look, and what to look for. Not only with the more established methods of traps and binoculars; but also exploring novel approaches such as tracking tunnels and trail cameras, encouraging community recording, and searching for old records amongst the files and libraries of other organisations. ERCCIS worked with CMG to produce the species distribution maps and is proud to support the production of this wonderful publication.