19/09/2026
European bison act as agents of regeneration / ecosystem engineers by browsing and breaking up dense canopies, and their hooves scarify the soil allowing new plants to grow.
Which other species should we bring back to the UK?
The UK’s bison have just been given their very own bridges 🦬
Two new bridges have opened in West Blean and Thornden Woods near Canterbury, Kent allowing the UK’s free roaming European bison herd to access twice as much woodland
The bridges actually allow people to cross above the bison, while the animals travel underneath, keeping visitors and the huge animals safely separated. The new crossings have increased the herd’s available habitat from around 50 hectares to 100 hectares 🌳
The bison are part of the Wilder Blean rewilding project, where their natural behaviours such as grazing, browsing and trampling vegetation help create a more varied woodland habitat for other wildlife
The herd was initially cautious about using the new crossings, with the first bison venturing through at night. But camera traps and tracking data have since shown them exploring their newly accessible woodland 🪵
And this could get even bigger two more bridges are planned, which would eventually give the bison access to around 200 hectares of woodland
Cool, init
