LIVESTOCK GRAZING

The livestock which graze our moors are a common sight, benefiting from the landscape’s open character and these include upland sheep and cattle breeds as well as in some places ponies, such as on Exmoor and Dartmoor. 

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Grazing moorland areas requires knowledge and experience to ensure vegetation is neither under-grazed or over-grazed.  This requires careful selection of stock suited to upland areas and careful management to move them around the moor.

 

Low livestock density grazing on moorland aims to maintain or enhance the habitat by helping prevent the expansion of bare ground, increase surface roughness, reduce diffuse pollution, improve water quality, and manage flood risk. Additionally, it provides habitats for moorland species and protects historic and archaeological features. 

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A well-established effect of overgrazing is that it reduces the condition and extent of heather cover, which is typically replaced with grass-dominated vegetation. If an area is grazed heavily, the palatable species can be grazed out – either directly or by their flowers being eaten, so they can't produce seed. The less palatable species then expand to fill the gaps. The habitat, grazers and insects that rely on the lost species all lose out as a result. 

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Sheep    

The Heather Trust believes that reducing sheep densities can have a positive impact on increasing heather cover and there is some evidence to suggest that restoration of heather on moor edges, through sheep grazing reductions, can improve breeding success and increase numbers of black grouse.  

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However, a low-density, lighter grazing regime has some benefits in terms of the environment and biodiversity. Sheep can manage a habitat and, in some places, help control tick numbers; shepherds benefit from summer grazing on the moors and the positive impact of gamekeeping. It is therefore beneficial for moorland managers to have good working relationships with shepherds to ensure the sustainable management of heather moorland. 

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Cattle and Ponies 

In relatively recent history sheep have predominantly grazed Britain’s moorlands and uplands, but cattle can have added benefits of breaking up dense vegetation with their heavier feet and because they are happier to eat rougher vegetation.  As such, there is a move towards reintroducing cattle as a management tool. 

  

Grazing by cattle or ponies can have the positive impact of creating diverse vegetation structure: cattle graze less selectively than sheep, which in turn helps fine-leaved grasses, flowering plants, moorland birds and other wildlife thrive. 

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As such the Heather Trust is interested in the activities that will enable moorlands to continue to hold their unique place in a mixed mosaic of land uses and types throughout the country, and promotes that those activities should be undertaken in a way that is environmentally sustainable.