Orford Ness: Remote shingle spit sheepdog 'finds sea legs'

A sheepdog whose commute requires a boat has "found his sea legs", a shepherd has said.

Since February, one-year-old border collie Sweep has been rounding up rare-breed sheep at the National Trust's Orford Ness nature reserve, on a remote shingle spit off the Suffolk coast.

Sweep, who is still in training, has taken over from his predecessor, Kite.

Shepherd Andrew Capell said Sweep was used to sheep "but the ferry crossing has taken a bit of getting used to".

"Thankfully, he seems to have found his sea legs," he said.

The National Trust maintains the reserve, which is on the longest shingle spit in Europe, and runs a public ferry service to get to it when Covid restrictions allow.

Orford Ness was used as a military testing site during World War One, World War Two and the Cold War. It was sold by the Ministry of Defence to the National Trust in 1993.

Sweep is the only dog allowed on the spit because of the fragility of the habitat and he will work with sheep, including the Whitefaced Woodland, Manx Loaghtan and Herdwick breeds.

Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion please email [email protected]