RE-WILDING BRITIAN ?

Some months ago I saw a BBC program that outlined an organisation/charity under the umbrella of Friends of the Earth that are in the process of setting up calling themselves Re-wilding Britain, their aim is just that, to re-wild remote areas of Britain with species such as Lynx and Wolves even Pelican and Sturgeon, but could it work? As a basis for their arguments they cite the reintroduction of Wolves to the Yellowstone National Park in the US, and it is a very impressive study.

In 1995 after being absent for 70 years, Wolves were reintroduced to the park amid a deluge of protests not only from farmers but also some naturalist claiming they would devastate the parks ecosystem. The parks Deer population, without a major predator to keep it in check, had exploded which lead to overgrazing of the valley floors, when the Wolves arrived the Deer were forced up the valley sides into more wooded areas for safety. Without Deer nibbling shoots the valley floors soon regenerated with Aspen, Cottonwood and shrubs, this in turn lead to an increase in songbirds and Beaver. The dams the Beaver created provided habitat for even more species to colonise such as Otter, muskrat and amphibians. The Wolves reduced the large numbers of Coyotes in the park which had the knock-on effect of increasing the populations of Rabbits, Mice and Voles the Coyotes main food source. This increased food source now helped to boost the numbers of Foxes, Badgers, Weasels, Owls and Birds of prey.

Now here’s the really astonishing aspect the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park had... they actually changed the behaviour of the rivers! Studies have shown that because Deer were no longer grazing the shoots of trees and shrubs the river banks became more stable as the roots took hold so reducing erosion, in some areas they stopped meandering and became faster flowing. So the Wolves not only significantly transformed the ecosystem they even affected the physical environment of the park.

The question is could it happen in the UK? Is Re-wilding Britain being too ambitious? Although I would love to see Wolves and Lynx roaming our countryside I unfortunately don’t think it can or will ever happen. Indeed the recent  reintroductions of Beaver is causing controversy, Eagle Owls nesting in Northern England is another contentious issue and for the first time Wild Boar in the Forest of Dean are more likely to be the cause of a traffic accident than Deer. We quite simply haven’t got enough room on this tiny overcrowded island, what little is left after farming, industry and housing provides us with a few small nature reserves. The only lands available and large enough to sustain apex predators are the Scottish Highlands and moorlands of Northern England, and they are already possessed by large landowners with very lucrative shooting rights. The last thing they want on their land is a predator thinning out their Deer herds or devouring their Red Grouse, as is very evident by their massacre of Hen Harriers each year. I may sound overly pessimistic but to put things into perspective Yellowstone National Park is huge, it covers 3,472 square miles which is about ½ the size of Wales, I just cannot see a time when any government or individual would give over that amount of land to wildlife, simple as that.

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