This 3 day pilot project brought together Dylan Walker from Wilderlife, Railway Land volunteers and some of the recoverists from small performance adventures, a Brighton based charity that who works with people in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction.

 

The course involved looking at keystone species that have been lost and the role they would have played as ecosystem engineers. Two groups then adopted one species each (wolves and aurochs), looked in more detail at the impacts their existence would have had on the landscape, and then recreated some of them. For example, the aurochs recreated a bull pit, which would have been buzzing with all sorts of wildflowers and invertebrates, and the wolves tried (gently and in fun) to recreate the ‘ecology of fear’ that influences other species’ behaviour – in this case dogs on the water meadows! Needless to say, real wolves were not involved.

 

It was an inspiring three days, and showed how a popular concept such as rewilding can be used to engage people and spark their imaginations in small spaces where rewilding itself is not possible.

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Watch this space for more rewilding experiences!