Friday 6 August 2021

On The Heath

Knettishall Heath lies in that part of East Anglia which is known as Breckland. The Brecks are an area of poor, mostly sandy soils which were devastated back in the Neolithic by the efforts of early farmers. "Breck" land means "broken" land. But rather than give up on this land, mankind has continued to find uses for it: grazing sheep, farming rabbits and more recently using large parts of it for commercial forestry and army training grounds. Recreational use and pig farming are just two more of the pressures on the land today. 



You might think that nature would have moved out long ago - but you'd be wrong! Instead many species of plants, insects, birds and reptiles have adapted to this landscape.



Heathers are just some of the more noticeable plants to thrive on the sandy soils. But left to its own devices the natural world would not maintain the status quo, as we shall see on this circular walk around Knettishall Heath.



When the land is left free from interference from humans, and most especially their grazing animals, it can soon become covered in bracken and trees, which is good habitat for some species and no good at all for others.



Our footsteps soon led us down to the banks of the River Little Ouse. Much of the river is quiet and peaceful, though close to the car park it's popular with picnickers and wild swimmers. Old chaps like me may flee in horror from events like "Young Explorers", or even "Wild Babies", but they serve a useful purpose in introducing youngsters to the natural world.



If they'd wandered a little way along the river bank they might have been delighted to discover Peacock and Red Admiral butterflies busily feeding on the flowers of Hemp Agrimony.



But bracken, that tough and hardy fern, can swiftly stifle the growth of so many of the special flowers and plants of Breckland. There's just not enough money in sheep farming any more and the wild rabbit population has been reduced by myxomatosis and other diseases. Without their constant nibbling the bracken can just take over.....unless an ally is enlisted.



Bring on the ponies! These are Exmoor Ponies which are normally found on the moorlands of Somerset and Devon, down in the south-west of England. Even on Exmoor they are not truly wild animals; they are all owned by somebody. But they do roam freely across the uplands and are just rounded up once a year to count them, check their health and take some to sell on - or indeed to send them off to nature reserves for conservation grazing.



Exmoors are just one of the many semi-wild types of ponies that graze the British uplands and like most others were used in the past as pit-ponies, hauling waggon-loads of coal underground. They are stocky, powerfully-built animals that range in colour from brown to dun to bay (various shades of brown) and have distinctive "mealy" markings around their muzzle and eyes.



At this time of year they have lustrous, glossy coats that seem to shimmer in the sunlight, but come back in winter and you'll find they have thick shaggy coats that protect them from the cold. And more importantly they also efficiently shed the English rainfall.



The Rare Breeds Society reckons the status of the Exmoor pony is "endangered" with only a couple of hundred individuals remaining. I hope that they (and other upland pony breeds) can become more numerous on our nature reserves; they are certainly very popular with visitors.



They have their work cut out if they are ever going to get the better of this bracken and return the Breckland heaths to their former glory.

They don't actually eat the bracken (see Marlane's comment below and the information which follows it). I had misunderstood the complexity of it. The ponies have lived on Exmoor for centuries with no ill effects.




Take care.

29 comments:

  1. Great that you got those photos of the ponies...and I also hope they continue to be semi-wild and get the bracken under control.

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  2. What a treat seeing these rare ponies up close and in person! I love all the history (along with great photos) included with your posts.

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  3. You can always be relied upon to take me on your walks wherever you go John - so as usual thank you - I enjoyed our walk together.

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  4. Love all the photos of the Exmoor ponies and interesting about how they are allowed to graze wild.

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  5. How wonderful that the ponies are being left to go wild and be free while doing such a good job clearing the bracken.
    The butterflies are beautiful.

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  6. I did not know England had wild, or even semi wild, ponies. They look so beautiful in the bracken. Even in so called wasteland, nature fills a vacuum and provides beauty. We just have to get out and look for it.

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  7. Thank you so much for the soul soothing,mind calming beauty you share post after post.

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  8. An interesting walk there. I was surprised to learn about the semi-wild ponies. I hope their numbers come back and that they keep working on that bracken. Love seeing the butterflies. I finally saw a Buckeye the other day. That and the Swallowtails are the only two butterflies I've seen all summer.

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  9. Bracken is poisonous to horses and ponies so I hope that they are not eating it, It causes long term liver damage.

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    1. This is from the Exmoor Pony Centre: "Exmoor ponies are brilliant at conservation grazing. Very hardy, with an ability to thrive in all sorts of habitats from high moorland to bogs. They are selective grazers with great teeth, and whilst they like the sweet young grass, they will also tackle gorse, purple moor grass, soft rush, brambles and thistles with gusto; whilst trampling bracken and opening up the sward with their small sharp feet."

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    2. Yes instinctively they will not eat bracken,unless there is nothing else to eat, and I can certainly believe the trampling of it.

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  10. That was lovely, John. I knew about 10% of it and it was beautifully illustrated, as always.

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  11. I love the ponies! They are certainly beautiful and healthy looking. I hope their numbers increase. It would be a shame to lose such lovely animals. Thank you, as always, for your stunning pictures!

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  12. All the interesting things we do to manage nature reserves!

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  13. Thank you for this post. I learned a lot while looking at fine photos.

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  14. John, thank you for taking me on another wonderful walk.

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  15. La Naturaleza, con su vegetación nos obsequia con su belleza, por eso el hombre debe de tratar de preservarla, no dejando basura en ella ni dejando colillas de cigarros mal apagadas. Los incendios devoran las especies vegetales, dejando a la Naturaleza de sierta de vegetación y de animales.

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  16. I was thinking exactly the same as 'marlane' about the bracken, so your explanation is an interesting new fact to learn. It is also good to see that some of the spare Exmoor ponies are being rehoused on other nature reserves too.

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  17. There's something lovely about seeing wild or semi-wild horses. They'll need to do a lot of 'trampling' over a few years to reverse the bracken growth. It's invasive on our heather moors up here.

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  18. I too was wondering about the toxicity of bracken! You have too many curious naturalists reading your blog, John! The horses are truly delightful. As you point out they are not completely wild, but probably as close as one can get to it today. I would derive great pleasure from seeing them. I have seen the wild ponies in the coastal marshes of Virginia, and it was quite a thrill. It was also a great experience to witness wild burros in Nevada, descendants of mules set free by early silver miners - again not totally wild but a good facsimile thereof.

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    1. The "curiouser" the better, David! My first experience of Exmoor ponies was seeing them appear through the mist while walking on the moors above the Doone Valley - an unforgettable experience.

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  19. What’s treat to see the horses especially out in nature like that.

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  20. The ponies are beautiful creatures and doing a good job for the environment too. I didn't think they ate bracken either.That info was interesting.

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  21. It shouldn't but it always does surprise me the speed nature takes over neglected areas. Was interesting to read above comments John, I would never have guessed the bracken would be toxic to the ponies. They are so beautiful roaming around free there ✨

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  22. I love the islands of color and the stout ponies. Extremes in weather have made my garden a failure this year!

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  23. The Exmoor ponies reminded me of the wild ponies of Chincoteague Island in VA, near where we formerly lived. We never were able to get as close up as you did in your photos, John.

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  24. Hi John - thanks for this delightful post ... as too the various explanations from your curious readers! Thanks for the update re bracken ... we have some here on the Downs; but interesting to read your 'history' - cheers Hilary

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