Traditional livestock grazing and cutting edge technology have been used together to create the ideal conditions for wetland species.
Work on the Amazing Grazing project at the Great Fen in Cambridgeshire has now been completed thanks to a £78,000 grant from the FCC Communities Foundation, a not-for-profit business that awards grants for community through the Landfill Communities Fund.
Grazing by native breeds of cows and sheep is a vital part of managing fen grasslands to promote wildflower growth and provide ideal habitats for butterflies, dragonflies and birds including lapwings and redshank.
The Great Fen vision began in 2000 and as former agricultural land with square, drained fields is transformed into a complex natural mosaic of grass, pools and winding channels, static electric fences are no longer practical. So as part of the project remote GPS-connected cattle collars have been purchased, doing away with the need for fencing and giving the conservation team greater flexibility over how the area is grazed.
The ‘NoFence’ collars give a short low level pulse to the cows, similar to an electric fence and can be managed remotely by the team. The livestock quickly learn their new boundaries and avoid approaching the ‘virtual fence’ line again.
To make the project possible and maintain livestock welfare standards, the team also installed new cattle management areas, ditches and water supplies at New Decoy Farm.
David Metcalfe, Senior Reserves Officer, said: “Although it’s known for its wide arable fields, the fenland landscape has been home to cows and sheep for generations. We always knew getting grazing animals into the emerging new wild wetland areas was going to be a challenge, so the NoFence collar technology has been fantastic.
“With some extra work to ensure the animals have access to water and we can carry out vital vet checks, they are now roaming the landscape creating wildlife rich landscapes wherever they go. Carrying out the work they do in a wetland with agricultural machinery would be almost impossible – so we love having them on the Great Fen team!”