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https://www.positive.news/society/weaving-a-story-of-hope-with-nature-recovery/>
"It was a family of beavers that inspired Sara King’s career choice. Now a
manager at Rewilding Britain, the charity restoring the nation’s ecosystems,
King had been working as an ecological consultant when she visited a beaver
enclosure in Devon.
She was astounded by the complexity of the wetlands these industrious furry
mammals had created there. “It was a turning point that took me on the
rewilding journey I’m on now,” she says. “Seeing nature return to this small
fenced enclosure made me think: ‘I don’t think we [as humans] would have been
able to create such an amazing wetland if we’d designed this and got the
diggers out and created it ourselves.’ [I realised that] keystone species like
beavers can actually restore nature much better than we can.”
Working at Rewilding Britain often leaves her in awe of what can happen, she
says, “when we put nature in the driving seat, rather than trying to control
it”. Take the Knepp Estate in Sussex, which is now home to the largest colony
of purple emperor butterflies in the UK, thanks to the sallow scrub emerging
there after almost 25 years of rewilding. The triumph has challenged
traditional wisdom that these spectacular butterflies prefer woodland habitats.
“I trained as an ecologist, and we were kind of taught that we knew everything
about species,” King says. “But rewilding is broadening our knowledge of nature
in Britain, and throwing in some surprises along the way, which is super
exciting.”
King’s current role involves supporting landowners and land managers to rewild
land, giving them practical advice and helping them connect with others to
share knowledge and ideas. Visiting rewilding projects is one of the many perks
of her job: “It’s great to be able to get outdoors and hear the birdsong, the
buzz and the abundance of insects, and to see herbivores, like cattle and
ponies and pigs interacting with these landscapes.”
Even when she’s not working, King finds joy in what rewilding can achieve.
While on holiday in north-east Poland last November, she saw three male elk
wandering through a field – part of a growing population that’s being supported
by wetlands, forests and meadows. “It was the perfect sunset,” she recalls.
“Elk are big and charismatic, and it’s really magical to be in their
presence.”"
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
