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Highland cattle join nature recovery effort at Greystones Farm nature reserve

GWT has welcomed a herd of Highland cattle to Greystones Farm nature reserve, where they will chew and scuff their way to better habitats for wildlife and species-rich grassland. 
Highland Cow eating

Greystones Farm, one of 46 nature reserves managed by GWT, is home to a wide variety of wildlife, including breeding birds, pollinators and rare grassland plants. The cattle arrived from the Forest of Dean last week and will spend the winter grazing the Salmonsbury meadows, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). 

There are currently seven cows on site, with 12 more joining in the coming weeks. As the cattle move around the meadows, their job is to eat the scrub and coarse grasses that dominate the fields so that rare wildflowers, like marsh orchids, can flourish come springtime. The cattle's hooves play an important role too, kicking up small patches of bare ground so plant seeds can germinate, whilst their dung helps insects like dung beetles, which in turn support a range of other wildlife. 

In time, the cattle will move into the scheduled monument fields, where their grazing, alongside wildflower sowing, will help increase the diversity of wildflowers across the site. 

Grove Sykes, lead land manager for the east of Gloucestershire, said:

"It's great to have the Highland cattle back at Greystones. They do a fantastic job of managing these meadows in a way that benefits wildlife, grazing back the coarser vegetation and creating the conditions that wildflowers and insects need to thrive.

"The Salmonsbury meadows are one of the finest examples of traditional floodplain meadow left in the Cotswolds, so it's important that we look after them carefully. The cattle are a key part of that. They help us manage the site in a natural way, and their grazing will play an important role in keeping these meadows rich and diverse for wildlife long into the future." 

The Salmonsbury meadows remain one of the richest and largest traditional meadow systems in the Cotswolds. Home to wildflowers such as great burnet, ragged robin and cuckoo flower, the meadows support a wealth of grassland plants, providing food and shelter for a wide range of pollinators and other wildlife.

Conservation grazing is a tool used by GWT and other conservation organisations to create spaces for wildlife and plays a vital role in maintaining this habitat. The hardy nature of highland cattle makes them excellent recruits for the role of overwintering conservation grazers as their thick coats allow them to remain outdoors through the winter. Their presence forms part of a wider vision to return the site back to nature and increase biodiversity. 

With a large area to roam, the cattle can sometimes be difficult to spot. Visitors with dogs are encouraged onto the site, but are being asked to:

  1. Stay at least 10m away from the cattle.
  2. Keep dogs on leads all year around for the benefit of wildlife
  3. Take dog mess home with them
  4. Always keep close control of their dogs and stick to the footpaths

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