Our familiar rural landscape has not occurred Livestock do two things in grassland; they eat by accident but has evolved over thousands of and remove the vegetation which allows the years due to management by farmers and land less competitive plants, such as many managers. Grazing is a fundamental part of wildflowers, to grow alongside the more this management but due to pressures on the competitive plants. Many grasses are good land such as economic development and competitors and without grazing they often increased food production, the traditional become tufted and can grow tall, shading landscape, with its ‘natural’ grassland wildflowers and preventing them from being habitats and species has been lost from large able to harness the sun for photosynthesis. parts of the country. This effectively starves the plant and they are unable to survive. The second thing that The species-rich grasslands that remain need livestock do is remove the thatch (dead grass to be managed appropriately to ensure their and leaves) that gets trapped between the survival. Grazing forms a key part of this, grasses and flowers covering the soil. Some either as spring and aftermath grazing on thatch may be eaten by livestock when they meadows managed for hay or extensive or munch through living vegetation, but they pulse/mob grazing on pasture. An efficient also help by trampling the ground and grazing regime is based on a complex creating patches of bare soil between the combination of four factors: grass tufts moving the thatch aside. All • timing – time of year and frequency of wildflower and grass seeds need to be in grazing contact with bare ground to germinate and • intensity – stocking rates establish a root system. Thatch prevents this • targeting – which areas to graze from occurring but livestock encourage • stock - type of animal to be used. germination by removing this build-up of dead material. There are three main types of livestock used to graze grasslands - cattle, horses and sheep. Livestock eat in different manners, which can Goats may sometimes be used, depending on have different effects on wildflowers and the situation. grasses. Some of these may be positive and help to maintain the species-richness of the
© Trevor Dines
grassland, whilst others may be negative. outcrops that livestock can retreat too Occasionally, it may be recommended to in severe conditions. graze a grassland harder to reduce scrub • fencing – appropriate fencing that is encroachment, create small areas of bare well maintained. ground to help seeds germinate and take the • attention – the livestock should be grassland back to an earlier stage of checked at suitable intervals, which ecological succession1. may be daily. • care – on site and off site visits by a In an ideal world, a combination of mixed vet may be required. stocking will produce the best management outcome. All grazing animals need: It can be difficult to move livestock between • water – via a trough, man-made farm holdings, particularly in areas with high channel or naturally occurring. TB. Movement licenses are required for some • shelter – against the worst weather or types of stock and standstill periods may shade in summer. Even if there are not apply. This can cause difficulties if there are housing facilities on each site, there ‘flying’ herds of animals used to graze should be trees, bushes or rock species-rich grasslands. All grasslands are a managed environment and if grazing cannot be undertaken, some other form of 1 Ecological succession - the progressive management may need to be done to replacement of one community by another until a replicate grazing, such as mowing and climax community is established. harrowing.
Cattle
Cattle prefer to eat longer grasses and use occur around water troughs and feeders and their tongue to pull and tear the vegetation; when cattle are over wintered outside. grazing to a minimum height of 5-6 cm. They are generally better than sheep at creating Cattle are particularly good at reducing some and maintaining structurally diverse problem grassland plant species. For example, grassland: tor-grass occurs on calcareous grassland and is • their large size and heavy weight not particularly palatable for livestock. breaks up the ground; However, it is most palatable earlier in the • they avoid grazing around dung pats year when the shoots appear and cattle can which creates patches of longer be used to spring-graze pastures where it vegetation important for insect occurs. Spring-grazing can also be used to communities. These in turn are eaten reduce other grasses like tufted hair-grass and by birds and bats; purple moor-grass. • cattle are particularly good at knocking down and creating gaps in For more information on the suitability of tall, coarse vegetation such as bracken different cattle breeds for conservation and scrub. grazing see The Breeds Profile Handbook.
Different cattle breeds have differing effects on rough grassland. Traditional breeds are more adapt at eating rough grassland, putting on weight and maintaining condition for production, compared with commercial breeds. Cattle need more water than sheep, and access to troughs is required at all times. The location of water troughs and mineral licks can be used to influence where cattle graze. Poaching or pock marks (the excessive trampling of grassland by cattle when wet) adversely affects pasture and meadows and can lead to a hard impenetrable surface when dry, where plants are unable to germinate. It is a particular problem that can
Horses and ponies
Horses and ponies have forward facing teeth hardy, being able to cope in adverse weather and can graze extremely close to the ground – as they are often reared outside without ever as close as rabbits. The benefits of grazing being brought into a stable. In the autumn, with horses and ponies are: some breeds such as New Forest ponies, will • they preferentially select sweet graze large quantities of bracken once the grasses, but will also eat a variety of toxicity has reduced, making them ideal for sedges and rushes particularly later in restoration grazing. the summer; • they tend not to select flowers, as Problems can arise in specific locations as sheep do, and avoid buttercup, horses may create latrine areas, which lead to common knapweed and ragwort; a tightly grazed vegetation and can cause • they regularly graze tufted grasses, localised high nutrient levels and encourage including tor-grass; the spread of thistles, nettles and docks. • these ‘fussy’ diets are ideal for Regular collection of dung will alleviate this maintaining the mosaic habitat needed problem and usually the more species-rich by many insects. areas of a site are not used as a latrine as they are become preferred grazing locations. As with other livestock, there are behavioural and grazing differences between horse For more information on the suitability of breeds. Native breeds such as Exmoor, different horse and pony breeds for Dartmoor and New Forest ponies are regarded conservation grazing see The Breeds Profile as more suitable for rough grasslands and are Handbook.
Sheep
Sheep have thin, mobile lips and move slowly • their dung is deposited randomly and over the sward nibbling the grass. They eat they will graze next to it, therefore selectively when circumstances allow, biting grazing swards to a uniformly low off single leaves or shoots down to a height of height. 3 cm. It is notable that sheep only develop a full set of adult teeth after 3-4 years and then Sheep are less susceptible to the toxins in steadily lose them as they age, therefore ragwort and so can be used to spring graze it young and old sheep may not graze as in its rosette stage to prevent flowering and effectively as middle-aged sheep. As well as setting seed. However, they are not immune grasses and herbs, sheep will also selectively to its toxins so require plenty of other eat some low scrub, especially the hardy vegetation to eat along with it. Extensive breeds such as Soay and Hebridean. bramble can cause difficulties for sheep as their fleece may get caught. As sheep are The benefits of grazing with sheep are: prone to foot rot they are not best suited to • they are light and more agile than predominantly wet sites. They also require cattle and are more suited to steeply more secure fencing than cattle. sloping land; • although on heavy, wet soils sheep can For more information on the suitability of cause trampling and poaching they do different sheep breeds see The Breeds Profile not have such an impact as heavier Handbook. grazers;
Goats
Feral goats may be managed as a livestock Goats will bark strip taking in order of herd. They are browsers, consuming woody preference, holly, ash, rowan and willow, vegetation 50-75% of their feeding time where oak, hazel, alder and birch in upland this is available, and do best on land that has situations. In lowland situations they tend to scrub and tufted grasses making them eat elder first, followed by ash, blackthorn, particularly suited to restoration grazing. sycamore and rose. They generally do not eat Usually they graze grasses down to a height of field maple or hawthorn. Bark-stripping takes around 6 cm and can target grass seed heads place during mid-late winter when there are eating them before starting to eat the leaves. few leaves and the preceding year’s growth Like sheep, they do not develop their full set has been consumed. They may also browse of teeth until they are five years old and can heather to a greater extent than sheep. lose teeth in older age, meaning that middle- aged goats are most effective. Goats have been particularly used along steep cliffs, such as Burrington Combe in the Mendip The benefits of grazing with goats are: Hills, to reduce the amount of scrub and • they have a small muzzle and a encourage the growth of wildflowers. They flexible upper lip allowing them to be have also been used to reduce rush on wet highly selective about what they eat. grassland, with restoration achieved after 3-4 Goats prefer to eat the newer growth years by spring mob grazing with goats at a and leaves of scrub, bramble and stocking density of more than 10 animals per tufted grasses rather than finer hectare. grasses; • they are less prone to foot rot than Goats can be difficult to manage, and are sheep making them suitable for wetter often considered to be escape artists breaking sites but they do need some dry out of enclosures. However, they can be very sheltered ground within their home effective and different breeds can be used to range; address separate situations and issues. • they are agile and can tackle steep hills and rock edges, particularly For more information on conservation grazing suited to cliff edges that other with sheep see The Breed Profiles Handbook. livestock would have trouble accessing.