Page 60 - BR September 2023 (1)

September 2023 September 2023
WILD WOODBURY

A major part of rewilding is the restoration of natural processes, which for us at
Wild Woodbury meant a site-wide project to restore the waterways across the 420
-acres of land. Stage-0 in the river restoration process is simply water flowing
across a landscape; water that is not diverted or constrained into channels and
ditches, but can freely flow into the low ground, finding natural pathways and re-
establishing historic routes through fields.
We strategically filled in ditches to push water out into the fields, before
supplementing this work by blocking up field drains and creating leaky dams
throughout the remaining ditch systems. The effect of the restoration has been
both immediate and incredible to witness, with a once dry and cracked
landscape now a heterogeneous mixture of large flows, ephemeral pools, and
delta-esque areas.
This wetland system makes the land much more resilient to drought, filters excess
nutrients out of the water, helps to alleviate flash flooding downstream, and will
provide habitats and space for biodiversity and bioabundance to increase. Just a
few weeks after the restoration had finished, we played host to 90 lapwing, 20
golden plover, and 30 common snipe, all feeding in the newly wetted areas.
Volunteering has once again been crucial to our successes this year, with
hundreds of volunteer hours logged for both practical and surveying sessions.
Days have been varied, including the pulling of non-native species, putting in
signage, and planting out the 1-hectare food forest. During surveys, staff and
volunteers have seen a huge increase in both biodiversity and bioabundance,
with the site list now over 1600 species. Many new species have colonised the site,
and several Red-listed and Red-data Book species are using the site to breed,
helping smaller populations build resilience, as well as increasing numbers of more
common species.
The upward trend in
ground nesting bird
numbers continues from
year 1, with skylark now
around 50 pairs, tree pipit
increasing from 1 to 7
pairs, and nightjar holding
new territories. Reptiles
are moving back in, with
confirmed breeding
adder, and increases for
grass snake, slowworm,
common lizard. Our
invertebrate numbers

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