Wilder Blean

We have introduced European bison to help restore UK wildlife and tackle the climate crisis.

Fundraise

What is the #WilderBlean project?

In the UK, lack of woodland management is one of the eight biggest drivers of species decline.

Thanks to funds raised by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, Kent Wildlife Trust and Wildwood Trust have partnered up to show how European bison can provide a sustainable solution to woodland management in south east England.

Similar projects across Europe have proved that bison, known as ‘ecosystem engineers’, can restore the natural biodiversity of a landscape. Natural bison behaviours - grazing, dust bathing, eating bark and felling trees - enable other species to thrive.

The presence of bison at the Blean, alongside Exmoor ponies and Iron-Age pigs, will transform the woods into a lush, thriving, biodiverse environment once more and allow us to step back from hands-on management.

Visit our FAQ page to discover more about this incredible project and how our ecosystem engineers will help to manage this habitat and how you can get involved too.

A key part of this project will be extensive consultation and engagement with local landowners, interest groups and residents who know and love this area. Read on below and sign-up to find out more about this project and hear the latest news and updates about the impact our ecosystem engineers are having on their habitat.

The herd is growing...

A new bison calf was born in December 2023. Watch the first moments of this calf, a historic moment for UK conservation.

Why did we embark on this project?

In the UK, we’re headed for increasing species extinctions in the next 10 years.

At Kent Wildlife Trust, we know that the key to enabling species to survive and thrive is to create a nature recovery network, of bigger, better quality, and more joined up habitats

Species in the UK are declining at their fastest rate for thousands of years according to the latest State of Nature report and unfortunately, human management alone is not enough to create the kinds of habitats species need.

What we need are natural solutions and this is why we’ve taken the strategy one step further, by promoting ‘Wilding’ across some of our sites in Kent. Wilding is when nature is given the tools and space it needs to recover itself and has the potential to increase the abundance of biodiversity to levels beyond what human management achieves and helps store carbon.

How will we measure its success?

In order to demonstrate the incredible potential of wilding as a nature-based solution to the climate and nature crises, it is crucial that we monitor each project site very carefully.

Our fantastic conservation evidence team and volunteers are out on site all the time conducting extensive fieldwork and analysing data on almost everything on site, including soil health, insect and animal abundance, vegetation structure and natural processes.

Find out more about our Monitoring Programme

Biological diversity and a Wilder Blean

Meet some of our team who explain why biodiversity is so important and how introducing European bison, Exmoor ponies and Iron Age pigs to West Blean and Thornden Woods will create a healthy and biodiverse haven for wildlife and people.