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Rewilding haven saved after £1.5m appeal

Simon Wantling A fox, with orange and white fur, pictured in long grass. It is looking into the distance, off to the right of the picture.Simon Wantling
Nature reclaimed Strawberry Hill after farming stopped on the land 37 years ago

Farmland that has become a haven for threatened species after being left to go wild has been saved thanks to a £1.5m appeal.

Animals and birds including nightingales and turtle doves have reclaimed the 377-acre (152-hectare) Strawberry Hill farm, in north Bedfordshire, which has been lying fallow for 37 years.

Following the owner's death, there were fears the land would be sold and returned to agriculture.

But the Beds, Cambs and Northants Wildlife Trust (BCNWT) said there had been an unprecedented "outpouring of support, passion and generosity" for the appeal to help buy it.

"I've not seen anywhere like this place in the last 20 or 30 years," said BCNWT chief executive Prof Brian Eversham.

BCNWT first leased the land in 2022 and raised £1m to buy the southern part of it - before launching its latest cash drive to buy the rest of Strawberry Hill.

PA Media An aerial picture of the land, which is covered in trees, shrubs and grass. Some of the trees have orange leaves as it is autumn. Others are green and grey.PA Media
Once-arable fields have reverted to scrub thanks to the accidental rewilding scheme

"We knew Strawberry Hill was a special place when we first began our fight to save it more than two years ago, but we had no idea it would capture people's imagination in the way it has," Prof Eversham said.

A huge response saw £500,000 raised by more than 3,800 people, with the rest of the money secured from trusts, funds and a "substantial" private donation.

Cuckoos and bats

The previous owner stopped farming his land 37 years ago, before the term "rewilding" became widespread.

Once-arable fields have since reverted to scrub, and young woodland is now home to wildlife including cuckoos and bats, as well as the nightingales and turtle doves - both red-listed after huge declines in their populations.

Holly Wilkinson A nightingale with its beak open while perched on a tree branch. It has a predominantly brown coat with a few grey areas. The branch it is perched on has green leaves.Holly Wilkinson
Threatened birds such as nightingales are thriving at Strawberry Hill in Bedfordshire

Prof Eversham said the BCNWT had also discovered rare wildflowers and recorded 11 of the UK's resident bat species.

"The amount of birdsong is unique in recent decades, I know of nowhere else with these numbers of nightingales," he added.

"The scale also means you can walk into there and feel completely isolated from the industrial agricultural world."

The BCN said it hoped create facilities to allow visitors to experience Strawberry Farm without disturbing the wildlife.

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