Conservation grazing

When you explore Surrey's nature reserves you may encounter our Belted Galloway cows - affectionately known as 'Belties.' These conservation heroes don't wear capes, but they are saving species one habitat at a time. Through their grazing and trampling, they craft a diverse tapestry of terrain, nurturing delicate wildflowers, pollinators, and endangered species, from Nightjars to Sand Lizards, to delicate wildflowers and orchid species. 

This lack of uniformity can’t be achieved by machinery or humans. Cattle keep dominant grasses and thatch at bay through their grazing style; they pull and tear with their tongues and trample vegetation, forming different height structures as well as leaving hoof prints which turn into small puddles.

Grazing over 6,000 hectares of heathland and chalk grassland each year, our ‘Belties’ can be seen on reserves such as; Barossa, Thundry Meadows, Norbury Park, Chobham Common, Wisley Common, Elstead Common and Whitmoor Common.

Pirbright Ranges is adjacent to a live firing range and owned by the MOD. It is also a wildlife rich heathland habitat. 

Access is heavily restricted for safety reasons, which makes it challenging to manage the habitat with conventional techniques. The solution - use red deer, a native species that is ideally suited to the heathland and woodland habitats found on the Ranges.

Although once widespread throughout Surrey, Red Deer in the county are now mostly restricted to deer parks and a few small, wild herds. 

The deer are doing a magnificent job in managing the amounts of pine, birch and gorse on the heath as well as creating a diverse structure in the regenerating heather. As a result, nightjar, woodlark and Dartford warbler populations are on the increase. 

The Trust maintains the herd at around 200 animals and uses special vehicles and camera traps to monitor their welfare.

July 22 Wildfire

In July 2022 Pirbright Ranges suffered an extensive wildfire covering some 650ha of the reserve. It is expected to take over a decade for the site to recover to its former condition.

A current focus for our grazing team is to develop a new crossbreed of sheep. By combining the characteristics of Boreray and Wiltshire Horn sheep, our goal is to establish a breed that embodies wool-shedding traits, a gentle temperament, and effective grazing and browsing behaviours.

Boreray originate from the Outer Hebrides, are small in size with wild deer like behaviour. They are excellent browsers, are very hardy and can shed their wool. Wiltshire Horn are a native, large traditional breed that are very docile and also wool-shedding.

The ability of our sheep to naturally shed wool will lessen the need for chemical intervention by reducing the risk of fly strike, while their shorter fleece prevents unwanted entanglements. Their light footprint also minimises any environmental impact in wet conditions.

In 2023 our first crossbred lambs arrived, and time will tell whether they have the behaviours and traits we’re looking for.

These sheep will support chalk grasslands and wildflower meadows of our east and central Surrey reserves, curbing the growth of the coarse grasses and thatch which threaten to dominate these habitats if left uncut.

The adept browsing of sheep also aids in managing scrub and bramble, further enhancing habitat health. By creating open spaces for less dominant species and regulating nutrient levels, they will help to maintain the delicate balance of the ecosystem.

Nofence grazing removes the need for physical fences, thus reducing the costs of their installation and maintenance across our sites, as well as limiting the physical impact on the landscape. It also allows more targeted grazing, helps us track the animals across the sites we manage, and ensures their welfare.

 NoFence grazing has been used successfully across the country and the Trust have used it for the last two years on two of our sites without issue.

Members of the public can check the location of cattle on a site with Nofence grazing by scanning a QR code or following a link displayed on reserve notice boards, which also have a printed map showing the current grazing area.