UK's first Bison bridges open in Kent
They'll allow the free-roaming hear to explore new areas
Two new bridges have opened in West Blean and Thornden Woods near Canterbury, marking the first of their kind in the UK.
These structures provide Kent's free-roaming European bison herd with access to twice the amount of habitat, boosting biodiversity in the area.
Video footage released by Kent Wildlife Trust captures the herd crossing these bridges for the first time, venturing into previously inaccessible woodland.
This expansion has increased the area available to the bison from 50 to 100 hectares, allowing them to enhance the landscape through their natural behaviours, such as browsing and grazing.
These actions contribute to creating varied habitats that support a broader range of wildlife, crucial for woodland resilience as the climate changes.
The new bridges are part of Kent Wildlife Trust's Wilder Blean project, which aims to restore natural processes across the landscape.
Plans are underway for two additional bridges, which would further expand the herd's roaming area to 200 hectares.
The bison, released into West Blean and Thornden Woods in 2022 as part of the partnership between Kent Wildlife Trust and Wildwood Trust, are known as ‘ecosystem engineers’.
Their interactions with the environment can alter the structure of the surroundings, creating a mosaic of habitats supporting diverse wildlife.
Heidi Aguirregoicoa, Bison and Conservation Ranger at Kent Wildlife Trust, said: “It’s been fascinating to watch the bison gain confidence with the bridges. At first, they were cautious and their first crossing happened under cover of darkness, but they quickly started using them more regularly. The tracking data and camera traps now show them moving throughout the wider landscape.
“We’re already seeing the impact of giving them access to this new area. Fresh paths are appearing through dense vegetation, bark is being stripped from trees and their dung is enriching the soil and supporting insect life. These are all natural processes that happen simply because the bison are being bison, and we’re now seeing them begin to transform a much larger area of habitat and create the conditions for many other species to thrive.”