PREVIEW

A pioneering rewilding project in Kent is celebrating the birth of a new bison calf a member of the third generation of the bison herd since the animals were released into the wild for the first time in the UK in 2022. Kent Wildlife Trust and Wildwood Trust, which run the Blean Bison project, confirmed the female calf was born in West Blean and Thornden Woods, near Canterbury. She is the fifth calf to be born in the ancient woodland. The bison were introduced to the Blean to help restore biodiversity and strengthen climate resilience. Acting as “ecosystem engineers”, they reshape the landscape by stripping bark to create standing deadwood, opening up corridors in dense woodland to let in sunlight and forming dustbathing areas which later become habitats for amphibians and invertebrates. Heidi Aguirregoicoa, Bison Ranger at Kent Wildlife Trust, said: “Welcoming this calf is another milestone, not only for the Blean Bison project but for conservation in the UK. “Every new generation strengthens the herd's role as ecosystem engineers, shaping the woodland and creating habitats for countless other species.”