Legislation passed in Brussels last autumn could bring bad news for some of the county's wildlife.

Because of rising food prices caused by shortfalls in global production, the EU has decreed that the principle of set-aside - leaving a proportion of farm land uncultivated or set aside from production - should basically be abolished.

Until October last year, EU legislation meant that eight per cent of a farm's productive acreage had to be left fallow. Now, because of food shortages, a nought per cent target has been imposed.

This means that vital refuges for the wildlife that thrived on set-aside land, which included field margins, buffer zones and small fields, could be lost.

"Set-aside was introduced in the early 1990s as a means of addressing over-production and controlling the supply of cereals," said Caroline Corsie, Worcestershire Wildlife Trust's agriculture officer.

"But it has also delivered many environmental benefits and become a vital habitat for birds, insects and plants."

"Defra has just published the first results from monitoring the impact of nought per cent and the results show the amount of set-aside left uncropped in Worcestershire is likely to fall by more than 50 per cent in 2008 and this could put the county's farmland wildlife in jeopardy."

The trust owns two farms, at Lower Smite between Worcester and Droitwich and at Hillcourt near Longdon, and is having to consider how to protect the biodiversity gains which set-aside land has brought to the holdings.

"While we could now grow crops on more of the land, we'll try to keep a balance between the income that would generate and the loss of wildlife habitat," Ms Corsie added.

"A proportion of our original set-aside will remain uncultivated or growing the bird seed crops which were always permitted on set aside areas.

"Short term, with high grain prices, we'll see some increase in income from arable crops and will invest this in other wildlife-friendly management.

"Farmers have done a fantastic job benefiting the environment through management of set-aside land and we hope that they too might find ways to avoid losing all this biodiversity gain completely.

"Agri-environment funding schemes need to provide means to support farmers in doing this. "

WWT bought the farmland at Lower Smite in 2004 and has commercially farmed the 160 acres on a mixed arable basis since then, while taking measures to protect and enhance its biodiversity.

"Through recognising the value of set-aside for wildlife, the trust has retained 10 acres of its former set-aside land for its biodiversity benefits," said Ms Corsie.

"It is always a surprise to see what grows when a field is managed as set-aside or allowed to lie fallow. WWT farmland is of national importance for very rare arable flora including corn buttercup (which is as rare as the panda!) and blue pimpernel which benefit from the rest from cropping provided by rotational set-aside.

"These flowers flourished in the 40s and 50s but advances in husbandry and herbicides means many are now living on the brink of extinction.

"A two-year set-aside mix containing sunflower, phacelia and also buckwheat, mustard, kale, millet and maize was sown to enhance year round food for birds, invertebrates and small mammals.

"Although there is no set aside requirement this year we have retained the mix at our expense.

"A winter wheat crop on the same area would create about a £1,200 profit but we believe this is a cost worth carrying.

"The mix has been visited by greenfinch, hawfinch, goldfinch, brambling, and the very rare tree sparrow, a wide variety of bumblebees, honeybees and other insects.

"We continue to manage our permanent pasture in an extensive, low-input manner.

This means that it is suitable for small mammals, which in turn provide food for kestrels and barn owls, both of which have bred at Lower Smite in recent years."

All this is being done rather against the EU's wishes, but then many would consider that a price well worth paying.