Grazing ponies shape Isle of Wight landscape

Two ponies have been helping to shape the landscape by grazing on grass as part of a rewilding project.

Exmoor ponies Logan and Luther were introduced to former farmland at Wilder Little Duxmore on the Isle of Wight and given the job of nibbling vegetation.

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust hopes the move will encourage habitat restoration.

Grazing over a large area creates the ideal conditions for insects, birds, reptiles, and plants to live.

The organisation bought the former arable farm in 2020, with the aim of reducing nutrient pollution and making the land habitable for wildlife.

The trust said the animals would "create a mosaic habitat structure" by snacking on vegetation, creating wallows in the land and breaking up dense grasses to encourage botanical diversity.

It is the first time the trust has used ponies to help with rewilding

The ponies joined other conservation grazing livestock already on the land, including native breeds of cattle and sheep.

Saddleback pigs and belted Galloway cows, from Nunwell Home Farm in Sandown, will also be introduced in the coming months.

Jayne Chapman, the trust's senior nature recovery manager, oversaw the introduction of the ponies.

She said: "Their small, sharp hooves create bare ground and vital edge habitat in heathland, which can support rare invertebrates, birds, and low-growing plants.

"Another advantage of these semi-feral ponies is they are extremely hardy thanks to a supremely efficient double-layered winter coat that allows them to withstand harsh weather," she added.