When you think of a woodland which species are the first to come to your mind? Trees of course, whether you can name many different types or just a few stars like oak and holly. Then maybe birds or insects making use of abundant food sources in woodland habitats. Perhaps flowering plants in the understory. Mammals including mice and squirrels might be next on the list. But what about large herbivores? We tend to think of deer, horses and cattle as species of wide-open pasture rather than dense forest. But thousands of years ago, before human action wiped out the majority of these species and their homes, large herbivores helped shape our landscape and were quite at home under the canopy.
Grazing and trampling by these species led to open areas where specialist plants, and the array of species specialised to them, to survive and flourish. Predators such as wolves, lynx and bear, coupled with cyclically harsh winters, kept herbivore numbers in check, thus allowing a dynamic ecosystem of regenerating habitats.
The practise of restoring these processes by reintroducing some of the lost species and then letting nature take its course is known as rewilding (although the term has become more generalised to cover many forms of restoration more recently).
But back to Alderney. On such a small island we are obviously never going to have the expansive web of species found in the vast forests of Europe or North America. The Alderney Community Woodland was created to increase tree cover by planting native, broadleaf species to form a connected wooded backbone for the island. The project is going well, with over 10,000 trees planted and many areas now at the point where the focus can move away from planting as natural regeneration sets in.
Our small conservation herd of 3 cows will be paying their first visit to the woodland from the 30th November. Look out for them in the glades by the scramble tracks as they graze open areas, to improve the plant diversity found there replicating some of the processes mentioned above.
Every year the AWT holds a woodland week at the end of November. Have a look at the programme as there is lots on, whether you’d rather practical work, a guided walk or even a film about rewilding. Drop in to the AWT to find out more, or look out for poster. We look forward to seeing some of you there, and maybe changing your perception of what woodland species and habitats really are!
If you are part of a group or club and would like to know more, the AWT are always keen to take part in talks or discussions about our current projects.