Blackbird with a worm in its mouth on the grass
©️ Tim Horton

April on Hothfield Heathlands - Highland cows and nesting birds

We are into full nesting season including the birds who nest on the ground or very low down in scrub, which is over half of Britain’s breeding species including the stonechat, robin, blackbird, skylark, yellow hammer, tree pipit and chiff chaff, not to mention the migrants such as whitethroats who will arrive from the South in May. This is also the habitat for small mammals and reptiles. Birds which already face so many threats will abandon nests and nestlings if disturbed, thereby putting at risk the next generation of that species. 

You can make a huge difference by keeping your dogs on leads and keeping to the main paths across the site.

Robin in a tree. ©️ Tim Horton

Thank-you Helen from Kent Wildlife Trust

 

It was an honour to attend the celebration of life for the wonderful Helen Stuart-Smith in March. The Stuart-Smith family have been a fantastic support for Kent Wildlife Trust for two decades, with Helen’s husband bumping into my predecessor on horse-back in the long distant past. I imagine the two of them chatting for some considerable time, before Joe offering a safe space for storing our battered old Massey Ferguson tractor.  

Helen has always been passionate about wildlife and protecting the local landscape. We would often chat about the patch of orchids recently found in the woods, or the lateness of the swallows this year.

Helen has left a large hole in the community, and I will miss bumping into her in the farm yard.

Ian Rickards, Area Manager

©️ Ian Rickards

Our celebrity cattle


You may be aware the Hothfield Highland cattle appeared on an unofficial TikTok video at the beginning of March.  After this post went viral, Hothfield Heathlands became inundated by people coming to see the cattle. 


It was great to see lots of enthusiastic visitors on site, but we have needed to manage people's expectations. We have been retelling the story that our cattle are here as ecological engineers, maintaining the habitats on which Hothfield Heathland's unique wildlife relies on. The cattle and other livestock are certainly not pets and are on site to support our conservation efforts.


Most importantly we want to ensure that our livestock are left in peace to behave naturally without disturbance.


These are the core rules we've been reinforcing:

  1. Give livestock a minimum of 10m space (10 big paces)
  2. Do not approach or attempt to touch or feed the animals.
  3. Dogs on leads across all open space, and whenever you come across livestock.

  4. Keep to established paths across the heath to avoid disturbing our wildlife.

     

However we're sad to say we've made the decision to remove the cows at Hothfield, at least for the time being. Unfortunately lots of people had been ignoring our rules and the pressure on the lovely Highlands became too much.

When under pressure, the cows can become distressed and not carry out their jobs as ecosystem engineers. That's best case - and worst case, they could start to react out of fear. To keep our cows and everybody safe and healthy, we've moved the Highlands for now.

Understandably a lot of people have been feeling frustrated or saddened by this situation, but one of the most powerful ways you can support is by donating to our Amazing Grazing appeal. Situations like this mean additional time, cost and resource to move animals when they should be doing their vital conservation work and restoring habitats on our reserves.


William Glasson, Ashford Area Warden
01622 662012 | 07483 017057   [email protected]
 

Cattle crowds at Hothfield