WOW…Underhill Wood Nature Reserve (UWNR) is 10 years old!
Before we purchased UWNR we had 2 distinct aims – they were: (1) increasing levels of biodiversity, by developing a range of complementary habitats, and (2) using the rewilded land to engage people in nature. 10 years on these aims endure and inform everything we do.
And it’s instructive to consider what we have achieved…
Aim 1 – some examples of what we’ve achieved:
· The butterfly species count has gone from 11 to 19…this is considered excellent according to my good friends from Butterfly Conservation.
· The dormice have not only increased in number, but they have increased in range, as the land has wilded. (Dormice are classed as an indicator species - what does this mean? An indicator species needs pristine and vibrant habitat, so therefore, its presence indicates habitat health and vibrancy).
· The barn owls have fledged up to 30 owlets, over the past 8 years. Barn owls are another strong indicator species.
· Surveying the stream shows that it hosts indicator species like alderfly, caseless caddis fly and cased caddis fly. These species weren’t present 9 years ago.
· Over the course of 3 years, we bat surveyed at the land – our species count is 9. Recently, the only whiskered bat maternity roost in Wiltshire was found at UWNR. How cool is that!
· Our conservation hedge laying, which we started in 2017, has been a gamechanger. In 2022 Harry James surveyed the first run of hedge we laid. The results blew us away, to summarize: in just 4 years after laying, invertebrate biodiversity (number of species) and bio-abundance (number of individuals) increased 2-fold. Conservation hedge laying has now become a feature of our winter work. (Imagine if this method was rolled out across the UK!). The CHL hedges are now winter refuge for fieldfares and redwings, who descend on them in vast flocks. These species were not present at UWNR is previous years.
· In 2024 an otter was present at the land, which was super exciting – a true apex predator in our midst.
· For the past 4 years, in springtime, a pair of hobby stop over at UWNR. They hunt over the lake, replenish their reserves after their migratory flight, the male displays to the female (this really is something to behold) and head on their way to their favoured nesting territory.
· As the marshland to the east of the lake has wilded and wetted (we cut the land drains in this area and created a series of scrapes), snipe and woodcock are a regular winter presence. It is likely to be the case that the woodcock are from Scandinavia or Russia.
· 3 wild honeybee hives are thriving at UWNR. And these are not just any old honeybee. They are rare, native honeybees – small, dark and feisty…at a distance they look like large flies!
· In 2023 a beautiful small invertebrate called a yellow-flag iris weevil was discovered. According to the entomologist who made the find, this animal is very rare in Wiltshire. It may the case that UWNR is the only site where it is present…
· And let’s finish this section off with a recent survey result. In June 2024 we surveyed the lake at UWNR - the results were striking. The Biological Monitoring Working Party has a rating system to indicate habitat health of lakes & ponds. A score of 40 is considered good and 50 very good. The lake at UWNR scored 60 – truly excellent!
What does this tell me – REWILDING WORKS!
Aim 2 – some examples of what we’ve achieved:
· We have run the John Muir Conservation Award for many years, creating opportunities for young people to learn about nature. I work with a small group of young people, over a long period of time – Nor came to UWNR when she was 8 and finished her John Muir work when she was 16! We are 18 months into a new group. Additionally, young people come to the land for work experience. 4 of these young people have gone on to study and work in ecology and related areas. Harry James is one of this number…he of conservation hedge laying fame!
· Out of the blue, one day in late 2020, people from the BBC Farming Today unit, called me asking is they could come to UWNR and record a program. Of course I said yes, and it was broadcast in January 2021. The response to it was huge….
· We have now had 150 people attend our ‘How to Rewild 1-50 acres’ 1-day workshops and 50 people on the waiting list. Our workshops give people, with new small-scale projects a plethora of ideas, which they can then incorporate into their work. I now deliver these with my good friend Sara King – Sara is a senior Rewilding Britain staff member and a vastly experienced ecologist. She adds much to the workshops!
· My friend, fellow rewilding advocate and champion Ben Goldsmith invited me to contribute to an episode of his acclaimed podcast ‘Rewilding the World’. It was a hit and has become his most listened to pod! It was broadcast in March 2024.
· Another good friend and rewilder Chris Hart, published Hedgelands in 2024. Our conservation laid hedges, and Harry’s surveying, are themes which runs through the book. Hedgelands celebrates this unique UK habitat and is clear-eyed about the role fat, verdant and vibrant hedges could play to restore our battered ecosystem. In the summer of 2024, it was longlisted for the prestigious Wainwright Nature Writing prize…it may do very very well!
· In 2021, the wonderful people from The Beautiful Truth came to UWNR and made a film about me and what led me to rewild the land at Underhill. The film got its first virtual public screening in the autumn of 2022. Since that release date almost 15,000 people have viewed the film.
· They backed this up, with an article published in their magazine The Beautiful Truth.
· In 2021 I decided to write (and self-publish) ‘How to Rewild – A Practical Manual from Underhill Wood Nature Reserve for One to Fifty Acres’. It has become a hit and is the best-selling book from Folde Dorset (they must be one of the best small bookshops on the planet!). The 3rd edition of the manual will be released in 2025.
· Small scale rewilding has become so widespread, that with friends Rich and Fiona from Found Outdoors, we set up the Wiltshire Small Rewilders network. Our first meeting was late winter 2024. We look to a future of swapping ideas, visiting each other’s rewilding projects, volunteering and growing the rewilding movement!
What does this tell me – REWILDING WORKS!
And there are a few people to thank who have helped over the years!
Gareth Harris. He is a hugely experienced and knowledgeable Wiltshire based ecologist who has given me so much help and shared so much knowledge over the past decade.
Louisa Kilgallen helped me shape the education program. It really works and that is because of the advice she gave me many years ago.
Sara King of Rewilding Britain. Sara has contributed so much to the project over many years – she co-delivers the UWNR rewilding workshops adding gravitas to them.
Harry James first came to UWNR as a 14-year-old. He is now 23 and a fully qualified ecologist. He is at the heart of much of what goes on at UWNR.
My brother-in-law Patrick Carew is my stalwart volunteer – he comes to help me rain, hail, wind and sun!
Elinor (Nor) Frith came to UWNR as an 8-year-old! She is now 17 and about to dive into her undergraduate studies (she is studying ecology…of course). Nor was a star of the John Muir Conservation Award program and she is quickly becoming an outstanding ecologist. She has been another stalwart volunteer!
Hugo Brooke of Butterfly Conservation has helped massively with butterfly and moth counts over the years. In the early days he encouraged me to create woodland glades – they have been so successful!
Matt Somerville of Bee Kind Hives has guided me as we have rewilded the rare and native honeybees at UWNR. His knowledge is amazing!
And finally, lots of other people who help from time to time: Jeff McMillan, Laura Loncar, Gustavo Montes de Oca, Sam Peters, Dan Brickell and of course Jack Sandford who was with me almost from the start and taught me things like, how good pignuts are to eat!
