European Bison in the UK

In July 2022, three European bison stepped out of a trailer and into a Kent woodland, becoming the first wild bison in Britain for at least 6,000 years. This historic moment marked a new chapter in British conservation, one where we're learning to let nature's biggest animals do the work of managing our landscapes.

The Wilder Blean project, led by Kent Wildlife Trust and Wildwood Trust, is demonstrating how these gentle giants can transform overgrown woodland into thriving, biodiverse habitat, without chainsaws or heavy machinery.

Return of the Bison

European bison (Bison bonasus) once roamed across Europe, from the Atlantic coast to the Ural Mountains. They were hunted to near-extinction in the early 20th century, with the last wild bison killed in 1927. Only 54 individuals survived in zoos.

Through careful breeding programmes, the population has recovered to over 7,000 animals across Europe. Now, they're returning to countries where they haven't lived for centuries, including the UK.

The Wilder Blean Project

Blean Woods, near Canterbury, is one of England's largest ancient woodlands. But like many British woodlands, decades of neglected management had left it dense and uniform, dominated by sweet chestnut coppice with little light reaching the forest floor.

The Wilder Blean project introduced bison alongside Exmoor ponies, Iron Age pigs, and Longhorn cattle to naturally manage the woodland. Each species has a different role:

Bison as Ecosystem Engineers

Bison don't just live in the landscape; they actively shape it. Their unique behaviours create habitats that benefit hundreds of other species:

• Bark stripping: Bison strip bark from trees, creating standing deadwood that supports cavity-nesting birds and saproxylic beetles.
• Tree felling: They push over smaller trees, creating fallen deadwood and opening the canopy to light.
• Dust bathing: Bison create shallow depressions for dust baths, which become bare ground habitat for mining bees and basking reptiles.
• Path creation: Their regular routes through vegetation create natural pathways and glades.
• Dung: Bison dung supports dozens of invertebrate species, including rare dung beetles not found elsewhere.

Benefits for Biodiversity

Early results from Wilder Blean are encouraging. Within two years of bison introduction, monitoring has shown:

• Increased light reaching the woodland floor, allowing ground flora to flourish
• New populations of purple emperor butterflies attracted to the glades
• Increased bird diversity as habitat structure becomes more varied
• Rare beetles colonising deadwood created by bison activity
• Greater plant diversity as different microhabitats emerge

The project demonstrates that natural grazing can be more effective than mechanical intervention, and cheaper in the long run once the animals are established.

Future of Bison in Britain

The success at Wilder Blean has sparked interest in bison introductions elsewhere. Several estates are exploring feasibility studies, and there's growing recognition that bison could play a valuable role in managing woodland across Britain.

Challenges remain: bison require large areas, careful management, and community support. But as more people see the benefits firsthand, the vision of bison ranging across British woodlands feels increasingly achievable.

How to See Bison

Wilder Blean offers public access to the bison site through a network of walking trails. Sightings aren't guaranteed, as the bison roam freely across a large area, but many visitors are successful.