PARTNERS in the Salisbury Plain Life Project are bringing the wildlife of the plain to the heart of the city, in a series of displays that opened at Salisbury library on Saturday and runs for three weeks.

As part of a European Union-funded project, the partners are keen to promote an appreciation and understanding of the wildlife and conservation importance of Salisbury Plain to local communities.

Project manager Stephen Davis said: "Salisbury Plain is generally inaccessible to the wider public, due to its primary use as a military training area, and people aren't able to appreciate what a remarkable place it is for wildlife.

"As a restricted area, it has escaped the impacts of modern agricultural practices, such as deep ploughing and the application of herbicides and pesticides, and consequently retains wonderful displays of wildflowers and associated wildlife.

"It supports internationally important populations of birds, such as skylark and the rare stone-curlew, along with large populations of some of our most beautiful butterflies.

"The Salisbury Plain Life Project also highlights the excellent relationship that exists between the army and its nature conservation partners."

The project is a four-year habitat restoration project, running from 2001 to 2005, which has already had a major impact on the plain and at Porton Down since it began in September 2001.

The project has so far cleared 120 hectares of scrub, 40ha of broadleaved plantations and 40ha of conifer plantations, and restored grazing to more than 2,000ha

of chalk grassland.