Eight Dartmoor ponies have arrived on Holt Lowes in North Norfolk, an internationally important area of heathland, bog and woodland that will benefit from the ponies’ conservation grazing. They increase Norfolk Wildlife Trust’s Dartmoor pony herd to 84 and represent its commitment to supporting this endangered breed.
Conservation work at Holt Lowes has been undertaken in partnership with the Holt Lowes Trustees and has already included large scale scrub removal thanks to support from Natural England’s Higher Level Stewardship Scheme. Previously the site has been grazed with cattle and NWT’s Flying Flock of sheep. Dartmoor ponies are now being used because they have proven so successful at grazing other NWT nature reserves.
The indigenous Dartmoor pony is officially recognised as an endangered breed. It is a small, hardy pony with a proven ability to maintain itself on poor keep in exposed conditions. They are also one of the more placid native ponies making them excellent conservation grazers, especially on sites with public access.
John Milton, NWT Field Officer, said: "NWT is looking forward to working with the Holt Lowes Trustees on this new phase of management for the Heath. Pony grazing is not only important in the control of invasive scrub and Bracken, but also creates a varied structure in the vegetation, making space for the smaller and more specialised plants animals, such as orchids and the insectivorous sundews and butterworts”
The ponies were sourced from the Dartmoor Pony Heritage Trust (DPHT). The main goal of the DPHT is to preserve the traditional type of single colour Dartmoor pony, known as the Dartmoor Heritage pony, the foundation stock for all Dartmoors worldwide.
Charity Manager, Dru Butterfield said: "This is a perfect partnership. We are increasingly concerned at the reducing number of Dartmoor ponies now running on the Moor. Placing well bred mares and fillies in other parts of the country has become a vital strategy to preserve the Native Dartmoor Pony – especially should there be a major disease outbreak on Dartmoor. We have continued to work on our relationships with existing and potential buyers across the UK and are delighted to be providing ponies to Norfolk once again; their commitment to our ponies could make all the difference to their survival."
NWT Grazing Officer Lucy Wilshaw said: “This is another great opportunity for us to protect Norfolk’s biodiversity and help secure the future of a vulnerable native pony. It is important to maintain the ponies’ wildness, because if they become too tame they can become overly-friendly to the public on our nature reserves rather than carry out important conservation grazing. If you see the ponies at Holt Lowes, please enjoy watching them from a distance.”
The Holt Lowes Trustees are looking for volunteers to check the ponies and possibly get involved with any husbandry activities. All volunteers will receive training in pony lookering to enable them to undertake the checking. If you are interested please contact Simon Harrap on 01263 587736 e-mail simon@norfolknature.co.uk