Cows graze Cambridge nature reserve to help biodiversity

The four Red Poll cows are being monitored to see the effect of their grazing on the nature reserve

Cows have been reintroduced to a nature reserve in the hope that their grazing will improve biodiversity.

Cambridge City Council said the "conservation grazing" on the reserve at East Barnwell would "help to enhance wildlife habitats".

It hopes the cattle will "target shrubs and tough vegetation" such as by nibbling at non-native plants.

The council will monitor the impact of the four Red Poll cows - a traditional, hardy East Anglian breed.

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The local authority, which manages the site in partnership with the Wildlife Trust, said the cattle would graze the reserve for the "next few weeks".

"Cattle are selective about where they feed, grazing around features such as ant hills and encouraging key invertebrates like Dor Beetles," the council said.

Conservation grazing helps to form a more complex mosaic of habitats and micro habitats than can be achieved through cutting by hand or with machinery.

It is hoped that "conservation grazing" will help to reduce invasive plants and improve biodiversity

East Barnwell nature reserve is managed by Cambridge City Council with the help of volunteers.

It is described as "a precious mix of woodland, scrub and grassland".

The cows' grazing could help to reduce certain pervasive plants, which the council said would "otherwise encroach onto grassland areas, threatening to smother scarcer plant species such as bee orchids".

Sam Carling, executive councillor for open spaces and city services, said: "I'm delighted that we're able to have cattle return to the reserve after a long absence and look forward to seeing how low-level conservation grazing improves the habitats of the reserve."

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