Wildwood Rewilding Project Consultation

Rewild our countryside - We need your views!

Your views are desperately needed to help Wildwood! We have the chance of getting funding to support our new rewilding project, but without emails and letters of support we will not get the funding. If you, especially as a representative of a local community group or school, can send us an email of support expressing your views to michael@wildwoodtrust.org for our project then that will help us unlock the funding!

Please Reply Today!   Wildwood’s dream is to create a rewilded Britain. At the heart of the rewilding approach is the restoration of natural processes, moving back to less intensive ways of managing our landscapes and emphasising the importance of nature to the health, well-being and prosperity of people. One of the ways we seek to restore these wild places to their former glory is by using large herbivores for conservation grazing. We plan to use a suite of woodland grazing animals, including wild boar, wild horses and European bison - a first in the UK - to restore habitat structure and ecological complexity. This creates a profusion of plant food and insect life in mixed woodland with a mosaic of grazed areas, allowing other life to thrive. In order to achieve, this we must improve our bison, wild horse and wild boar areas to enable us to safely move animals between our park and woodland rewilding sites. Not only will this keep our animals safe, but will help other wildlife as these new woodland habitats are created thanks to our amazing animals. Send your email of support to michael@wildwoodtrust.org and help us save our wildlife and rewild Britain.

Wildwood Trust Herne Common Herne Bay Kent CT6 7LQ Registered Charity No: 1093702 Wildwood: 01227 712 111 info@wildwoodtrust.org

Thieves in prison as dormice are released to freedom!

A huge thank you for your support

Thieves in prison as dormice are released to freedom!     Despite the terrible theft of dormice appeal donations, our conservation team are celebrating the recent release of sixteen rescued dormice from animals bred at Wildwood Trust. Wildwood Conservation Officer, Katie Prior, who was on hand to assist with the release said:   "Wildwood would like to thank from the bottom of our hearts, the hundreds of people who made donations to our dormouse appeal after the theft. This boost in donations has meant we can continue our vital conservation work to help save the hazel dormouse".   "It is vital that we continue to release dormice to help them expand their range and bring hazel dormice back into areas where they once thrived."   For anyone who hasn't yet donated and wishes to support this ongoing programme, donations can still be made by clicking the button below. Alternatively, you can donate by credit/debit card over the phone, post a cheque made payable to ‘Wildwood Trust’ or make a cash donation when you next visit.   DONATE HERE   »   Supported by a team of conservation organisations including the People's Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), Zoological Society of London (ZSL), Paignton Zoo, Natural England and Nottinghamshire & Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust; Wildwood was on hand to assist in the release of sixteen dormice, bred at Wildwood, to the secret locations.   Security camera footage at Wildwood caught the thieves on camera and thanks to a huge response from our supporters on social media, one of the three thieves were identified which, after police investigation, led to their imprisonment. Wildwood supporters rallied to the charity’s aid and replaced the stolen funds, which helped this year’s reintroduction to take place!   This year was slightly different, in that the released dormice were used to bolster previously reintroduced populations in order to increase genetic diversity and maximise their long term survival. The dormice had spent 10 weeks in quarantine – half at the Institute of Zoology in London and the other half at Paignton Zoo. They were all were health checked before being given the go ahead for release.   The dormice were ‘soft released’ – this means that they are held in a release cage for over a week before a small opening is made and the dormice are allowed to make their own way out. Food is then provided in the cages for them over the next three months.   Watch the video below to see one of the dormice that has since been released.     Wildwood Trust's Peter Smith said:   "We are so proud of our conservation team to have once again released so many dormice back to the wild following the shock of the robbery. It was fitting that the security system which caught the robbers, was originally acquired to record footage of baby dormice to help scientific research into their care and protection. Yet the same system, which had been relocated to the shop after upgrading the cameras for the dormice, caught the robbers red handed when they were stealing donations made to our baby dormouse appeal”.   “Our security system was praised by the police for its high quality and was a vital part of the evidence that brought this prolific criminal to justice”.   Over thirty of Wildwood’s supporters identified the robber from the security video and this then helped police with their inquiries. Wildwood supporters also rallied to their aid with a huge social media response that saw the CCTV footage viewed over 150,000 times, as word spread about the despicable crime.   Watch the video to see footage of baby dormice filmed using the same camera that captured the burglary.     Wildwood’s dedicated conservation team are the leading experts in breeding dormice for a national reintroduction programme, which has successfully bred more than 186 dormice and reintroduced them to woodlands where they have previously become extinct.   Scientific evidence shows the perilous state of Britain’s dormice that, without our help, face almost certain extinction. Despite being one of our most endearing woodland mammals, its desperate plight has alarmed scientists and the situation is getting much worse, which is why this vital conservation work is so important.   Each year Wildwood supplies captive-bred dormice for the release programme and as the studbook holder for the species, selects and pairs up the animals for release, thus ensuring the strongest genetic mix for future generations.   Thank you so much for your ongoing support in helping this vital conservation work to continue, with your help we have been able to give these dormice a real chance of survival!

Wildwood Trust | Copyright - © 2018 Herne Common Herne Bay Kent CT6 7LQ Registered Charity No: 1093702 Wildwood Kent: 01227 712 111 appeals@wildwoodtrust.org Wildwood Trust are committed to protecting your privacy in accordance with their obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998. View full Privacy Policy.

Wildwood July Newsletter

Wildwood Newsletter - July 2019

Dormouse Release   On June 18th a total of 22 dormice were released into the wild at two secret woodland locations in Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire. The release was coordinated by the People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) in partnership with the Wildwood Trust, Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, Nottinghamshire Dormouse Group, The Forestry Commission, Lincolnshire Dormouse Group, Natural England, ZSL (Zoological Society of London), Paignton Zoo and the Common Dormouse Captive Breeders Group. Wildwood played a major part in the release providing 16 of the 22 animals. Wildwood’s conservation keeper Katie Prior and volunteer Lucy Bunyard both went to the Lincolnshire release. Katie said, “having not had much previous experience with dormouse, I am personally thrilled to have been involved in such an important and exciting project. I believe it is of utmost importance that we protect these species as they can be an excellent indicator of the health of forests and hedgerows.” This year was slightly different in that the released dormice were used to bolster previously reintroduced populations in order to increase genetic diversity and maximise the long term survival of the population. The animals had spent 10 weeks in quarantine – half at the Institute of Zoology in London and the other half at Paignton Zoo. Here, all the animals were health checked and given the go ahead for release. The animals were ‘soft released’ – this means that they are held in a release cage for over a week before a small opening is made and the dormice are allowed to make their own way out. Food is then provided in the cages for them over the next three months.

22nd July – 1st September   Looking for the perfect family day out this summer? Put a smile on everyone's face with a trip to Wildwood. Come and see our wolf pack in their huge woodland enclosure, watch our rescued bears play fighting in their pool and marvel at the acrobatic red squirrels leaping from tree to tree in the new red squirrel walkthrough. Grab a bite to eat at our cafe or bring a picnic as you let your kids run wild in our adventure play park with climbing walls, rope bridges, slides and scary drop slide PLUS we have over 50 species of native British animals from past and present in our 42 acre woodland and plenty of FREE medieval themed activities to keep everyone entertained throughout the summer holidays!   Find out more about summer at Wildwood

Say hello to our new residents   This month saw the addition of some new residents at Wildwood, two beautiful green lizards. The honour of releasing them went to our rangers, Geoff and Simon, who helped build their enclosure. They've settled in brilliantly and can be often seen basking in the sunshine.

Saving South Hoath Wood   Wildwood Trust are delighted to say a huge thank you to everyone that donated so generously to our woodland appeal. Thanks to your amazing support we have already raised over £19,000 to save South Hoath Wood and have been able to pay the next instalment needed by the end of June! However, one more payment is still required to complete the purchase, so we are still asking for donations from anyone who is yet to donate and wants to help. Please visit https://wildwoodtrust.org/woodland_appeal to donate online, alternatively you can donate by credit/debit card over the phone, post a cheque made payable to ‘Wildwood Trust’ or make a cash donation when you next visit. Every little bit really will make a difference towards saving this ancient woodland and the rare wildlife it harbours, so no matter how much you can spare, please donate today.   Help save South Hoath Wood

Birds of Prey Flying Team   In preparation for our Flying Show in the summer holidays, we've been busy training up our flying team of Barnaby the barn owl, Gimli the tawny owl and our long-eared owls, Betty and Rusty. You can catch them in out outdoor arena next to the raven enclosure most days at 2.15pm.

Fallow Deer On The Move   Our fallow deer have moved location as we rotate the animals to allow ground to rest and recover. They're now up next to Caramel the elk. Go say hello!

Reindeer Update   Wildwood's baby reindeer is doing splendidly and growing fast! Come see the little beauty...

Bear Experiences   Our bear experiences for 2019 are available to book online until the end of September. Due to popular demand and the enrichment provided to the bears, we have introduced extra afternoon sessions. Wildwood Bear Experiences are a unique opportunity to meet and learn all about Wildwood's two rescued bears with exclusive behind the scenes access. Walk through the bears' large enclosure to scatter a feed, before meeting the bears and giving them a treat in their smaller enclosure. Then let them out into their large enclosure, where they will sniff out and hunt down the scattered food.   Click here to book now

Wolf Experiences   Wildwood Wolf Experiences are a unique opportunity to meet and learn all about Wildwood's family of six European grey wolves with exclusive behind the scenes access. Participants will learn all about this intelligent species before getting up close to our pack and feeding them through the wire of their enclosure.   Click here to book now

Conservation Courses   Our popular Wildwood nature courses for the summer period are still available to book, catering from complete beginners and amateur naturalists through to wildlife professionals. We cover a variety of topics ranging from species ecology, conservation and handling to outdoor crafts. To find out more, visit  https://wildwoodtrust.org/wildwood-kent/conservation/conservation-courses.    Click here to book now

Picture of the Month

FOLLOW US Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewildwoodtrust Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/WildwoodTrust Watch us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/thewildwoodtrust   ABOUT WILDWOOD Wildwood Trust opened in 1999 as a centre of excellence for the conservation of British wildlife, and was established as a registered charity in 2002. Wildwood is Kent's best British wildlife park. Home to over 200 native animals, past and present and set in 40 acres of beautiful ancient woodland where visitors can see bears, wolves, bison, deer, owls, foxes, red squirrels, wild boar, lynx, wild horses, badgers and beavers plus many more. As one of the leading British animal conservation charities in the UK, Wildwood Trust is dedicated to saving Britain's most threatened wildlife. Wildwood Trust have taken part in many ground-breaking conservation programmes to date, which include, saving the water vole, using wild horses to help restore Kent's most precious nature reserves, bringing the extinct European beaver back to Britain and returning the hazel dormouse & red squirrel to areas where they have been made extinct.

Wildwood Trust Herne Common Herne Bay Kent CT6 7LQ Registered Charity No: 1093702 Wildwood Kent: 01227 712 111 Wildwood Devon: 01404 822 188 info@wildwoodtrust.org