Right: The Lincoln Red – a traditional Trent Vale breed that will graze on scrub and


saplings that can degrade our w i l d f l owe r meadows (facing page).


Why is Notts Wildlife Trust raising funds for Lincoln Red cattle? NWT’s LUCY McROBERT reports


E X P E CTAT I O N S GR A ZE N


OTTINGHAMSHIRE Wildlife Trust has recently undertaken a huge project: to introduce a herd of Lincoln Red cattle to its voluntary team. This may seem unusual (what could 11 cows possibly do any more productively than a team of volunteers?) however we haven’t gone mad: this is all part of one of the latest movements in conservation, namely conservation grazing.


Here at the trust we appreciate the importance of biodiversity. Britain is made up of a huge variety of landscapes, ranging from the wetlands of East Anglia to the forests of Sherwood, the rolling fields of Leicestershire to the Highlands of Scotland, and they support a vast amount of life. There is little in the way of untouched wilderness on our island; in fact a huge proportion of our countryside has been manufactured, or at least influenced, by human hands. If we wish to preserve the landscapes that we have shaped and built, it is important to appreciate their diversity. Each area must be treated differently according to its precise needs, and this is where our cows come in. The traditional British view of a wildflower meadow has become something of a cliché;


126 NOTTINGHAMSHIRE TODAY Souvenir keyrings in aid of the appeal.


we can all picture in our minds the idyllic scene of little girls sitting making daisy chains, butterflies fluttering contentedly from flower to flower in the sun, or a pair of lovers lounging on a blanket. At one time England played host to large


swathes of these grassy meadows, teeming with wild flowers and insects. However, over the past 50 years over 98% of these have been lost to a mix of intensive agriculture, development and general neglect. Meadows are highly delicate ecosystems. Many were lost through efforts to improve


grazing yields by applying fertilisers. The resulting lush grasslands might provide better fodder for livestock but leave little room for delicate wild flowers and grasses. Even those that escaped so-called agricultural ‘i m p r ove m e n t ’ are taken over by invasive shrubs that destroy native vegetation. Here in Nottinghamshire we are lucky to retain some of these fabulous spaces, however they are under threat. For years, volunteers have undergone the backbreaking task of maintaining them. Now, thanks to recent developments, more volunteers can be deployed to other tasks as we have a batch of new recruits more suited to the job. The Trust already uses a flock of Hebridean sheep, introduced in 1999, and English cattle of the longhorn and Dexter varieties to rid some of the area of unwanted vegetation; however now we are branching out adding another breed to our arsenal. Lincoln Red cattle are the traditional breed of the Trent Vale. Whilst their Lincolnshire Heritage stretches back more than 300 years, the modern Lincoln Red owes a great debt to Eric Pentecost of Cropwell Bishop who, during the 1940s and 50s, was largely responsible for creating the polled (hornless) variety that is the standard today.


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