Happy 15th Birthday! Biodiversity success stories in the South Downs National Park
March 11, 2025
Did you know the South Downs National Park was created to help conserve and enhance biodiversity?
The 16,000km2 National Park was designated as a haven for nature with some of the rarest habitats in the world – reptile-rich heathlands, chalk grasslands brimming with blue butterflies, wildlife-rich wetlands and woodlands full of bird song.
But, like so much of Britain in the 20th century, nature had been marginalised in some parts, often just about surviving in isolated “island” habitats, leaving some species in danger of local extinction.
The creation of the South Downs National Park has started to turn the tide on that biodiversity loss, with concerted efforts over the past 15 years to create bigger, better and more joined-up habitats where animals and plants can thrive.
As the National Park celebrates its 15th birthday on 31 March, we’re sharing 15 biodiversity success stories to bring some sunshine to your day.
Jan Knowlson, Biodiversity Officer for the National Park, said: “Nature gives us everything. The air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat – it’s all dependent on biodiversity.
“The South Downs National Park has some of the rarest wildlife in the UK and is a last bastion for many species, so it’s vital that we protect them and strive to ensure that nature is thriving, rather than merely surviving.
“Through our ReNature campaign and many innovative partnerships, we’ve done a huge amount in the past 15 years to help wildlife and these efforts will continue at great pace. Ultimately, we want nature everywhere, for everyone. One of the wonderful things about National Parks is they are places where people and nature can come together.
“Nature recovery doesn’t happen overnight, but we’re seeing the green shoots of recovery. Many of us will remember the days when you’d come back from a drive in the country with a windscreen splattered with squashed insects. If we can get back to those days, we’ll know that nature recovery is really working.”
An area bigger than Portsmouth has been created for wildlife
Four years ago the South Downs National Park set a goal of transforming 13,000 hectares – or over 20,000 football pitches – into habitat for wildlife by 2030.
Under the ReNature initiative, a total of 6,082 hectares – an area bigger than Worthing or Portsmouth – has now been created or improved to help nature thrive.
The work has included planting over 70,000 trees to help woodland birds such as the great-spotted woodpecker and blue tit, as well as adding over 100 hectares of wildflowers to help pollinators.
“Ratty’s” remarkable return
A recent ecological report showed that the animal made famous by The Wind in the Willows is making a strong comeback in the National Park. A re-introduction programme started in 2013 and has seen the release of over 2,800 water voles. The report concluded that the furry mammals are indeed thriving, and busily breeding, on the river.
Thanks to the re-introduction by the Meon Valley Partnership, the otter has also returned to the River Meon, with evidence there may be three breeding females. Ecologists have found evidence of a wealth of other wildlife, including hazel dormice, hedgehog, harvest mice, brown hare, badger, grass snake, common lizard, Cetti’s warbler, kingfisher, lapwing, marsh harrier and brown trout.
Water voles are important to a river habitat as they provide a good meal for predators like otters, herons and marsh harrier. They are also known as “engineers” for thriving wetland ecosystems as their continual nipping and grazing of riverbanks helps to create flower-rich habitat for insect species such as bumblebees, moths and butterflies.
The Round-Headed Rampion and the Pyramidal Orchid
The Round-Headed Rampion, also known as the ‘Pride of Sussex’, can be found throughout the Sussex and Hampshire Downs. Scrub removal followed by sheep grazing has allowed this chalk grassland specialist to flourish.
This has only been possible thanks to partnership working at sites like Old Winchester Hill, where the combined efforts of the SDNPA, Natural England and our Volunteer Ranger Service has really helped the recovery of this species.
Meanwhile, The Pyramidal Orchid is another chalk grassland favourite in recovery. Scrub management by our volunteers, staff and contractors takes place during the winter months and has helped increase numbers of this beautiful flower.
Duke of Burgundy butterfly
The nationally declining and threatened Duke of Burgundy butterfly has responded spectacularly to habitat management work performed as part of the South Downs Way Ahead Nature Improvement Area (NIA), recovering from the brink of extinction and extending its territory.
The pioneering work involved the SDNPA, Wiston Estate, Steyning Downland Trust, and Butterfly Conservation and has seen population numbers increase significantly.
Supercharging private investment into nature recovery
Last year the South Downs became the first National Park to launch a Voluntary Biodiversity Credits initiative.
The voluntary scheme allows businesses of all sizes to invest in nature recovery and has gained significant interest since its launch last May. Under the voluntary scheme, more than 200 biodiversity units have so far been purchased to help create new habitat.
Part of the scheme involves creating a new wildlife haven on the Iford Estate, near Lewes. Over 50 hectares of the Iford Estate – or 80 football pitches – have now been formally dedicated to nature restoration, thanks to two groundbreaking legal agreements with the National Park Authority. It means businesses and individuals can invest in nature for many years to come.
Two iconic cricket species
The South Downs remains the last bastion in the UK for the iconic field cricket, whose “cheep, cheep, cheep” is the quintessential sound of summer.
Thirty years ago the species was isolated to just one site of 100 field crickets in West Sussex. But a concerted effort, led by volunteers and conservation organisations, has helped to establish six colonies at heathland sites in Sussex, Surrey and Hampshire.
Meanwhile, the wart-biter bush cricket has bounced back in the South Downs. One of the UK’s most endangered insects, its quirky name come from the ancient Swedish medical practice of using them to eat skin warts. The cricket was once found across southern England but numbers declined so dramatically that they are now found only in five locations, three in the South Downs.
A pioneering project has seen the rare insect reintroduced into new chalk grassland habitat around the Deep Dean Water Treatment Works in East Sussex, thanks to a collaboration between South East Water, Natural England, Buglife, and the Zoological Society of London.
Farmland wildlife
Over 70 per cent of the National Park is farmland and a concerted effort has been made to help wildlife, including important farmland bird species such as the grey partridge, lapwing, yellowhammer and skylark.
There are now six established Farm Cluster Groups in the National Park, with farmers working together to promote nature-friendly farming, particularly on the edges of farms which are less productive and make great habitats for all sorts of creatures.
Under the Farming in Protected Landscape (FiPL) scheme, over 3,600 metres of new hedgerows have been created and several hundred wild bird feeders have been installed at farms across the National Park.
More than 4,300 hectares of land is now being managed with regenerative farming techniques, which focus on rejuvenating depleted topsoil to improve its biodiversity and carbon-capturing powers, while also producing high-quality food.
Dragonflies
Ten dew ponds have been restored across the National Park to help species such as the iconic dragonfly.
Dew ponds are synonymous with the chalk grassland of the South Downs, historically being dug by farmers as a watering hole for livestock and some dating back several hundred years.
However, over many decades and due to changes in farming practices, dozens of these wildlife oases have fallen into disrepair or been lost completely. Climate change, with warmer, drier summers, has compounded the problem, meaning these bodies of water are more important than ever in providing refuge and drinking water for animals.
The National Park has set a target of restoring 100 of the ponds to help insects, amphibians and birds.
Wild Trout
The Rother Revival project, with support from The Sussex Lund grant programme, is under way and focuses on restoring and enhancing a stretch of the western Rother in Hampshire and West Sussex.
The work involves lowering the river bank to help reconnect the river with its floodplain, narrowing the channel to increase flow and introducing woody debris and newly-planted trees to provide valuable habitat for wild fish.
The work is helping to reduce erosion and sedimentation – something that will benefit spawning wild trout, which need clear well-oxygenated water and clean gravels to lay their eggs.
Wild trout are excellent indicators of the health of a river – and where they thrive you can be sure that other wildlife will thrive too!
“Rewiggling” the Cockshut Stream
Realigning a rare chalk stream near Lewes has created six hectares of much-needed wetland for wildlife
The restoration of the Cockshut Stream has seen the area quickly become an oasis for nature, with herons, kingfishers, egret and snipe among the many birds to be found, while toads, sticklebacks, eels and newts can be spotted in the ponds.
Grass snakes are using the reedy ditches and many species of dragonfly have been seen this summer in the meadow and riverbanks. The project was a partnership between Lewes District Council, partners at the Ouse and Adur Rivers Trust, Lewes Railway Land Wildlife Trust, South Downs National Park Authority, Veolia Environmental Trust and Chris Butler Archaeological Services.
Heathland conservation
A £2m initiative called Heathlands Reunited successfully conserved and enhanced 23,825 hectares of lowland heath – which is a reptile-rich habitat as rare as the rainforest. An independent scientific assessment revealed that the initiative has been “significant” in restoring the ecological condition of the habitat.
Through various partnerships, the National Park’s small heathland team continues to help protect these wildlife oases, which are as rare as the rainforest and make up just one per cent of the National Park. Some of the heathland sites have 12 of the UK’s 13 native reptile and amphibian species, such as the adder, smooth snake, Natterjack toad and sand lizard, and are also vital havens for the Dartford warbler and nightjar.
Securing the future of Seven Sisters Country Park
In 2021 the National Park Authority took over Seven Sisters Country Park, ensuring 280 hectares of chalk cliffs, meandering river valley and open chalk grassland remains in public ownership.
The green shoots of nature recovery are being seen at the country park, thanks to more investment and careful landscape management, including the introduction of Sussex Breed cattle and Shetland ponies.
The recovery has seen the return of species such as the short-eared owl, starlings and large flocks of dunlin, as well as swathes of colourful wildflower meadows with blue butterflies such as the Adonis blue. Two dew ponds have also been restored and are attracting a range of invertebrates and birds.
Barn owls
Hundreds of barn owl boxes have been installed across the National Park with support from local ranger teams.
In the Selborne Landscape Partnership, for instance, a total of 79 barn owl chicks were recorded between 2017 and 2021 – benefitting from the installation of 53 nesting boxes and the creation of 93 miles of tussocky grass margins across the region.
As an apex predator, barn owls are a good indicator of the health of landscape. As a general rule the more barn owls we have, the healthier the ecosystem is!
Dormice
Dormice continue to be on the brink across the UK, but the National Park has been working hard to help this struggling mammal.
Dormice love a well-managed hedge and hundreds of metres of hedges have been laid in recent years, together with extra training for volunteers and community groups on how to maintain wildlife-rich hedges.
Careful woodland management, together with more volunteer dormouse surveyors, means things are looking more hopeful for this elusive creature.
A new network of wetlands
An exciting £1.7m project called “Downs to the Sea” recently got under way to restore and create a network of “blue spaces” in the landscape.
The project will help hundreds of wetland bird species such as the curlew, redshank, wagtail, little egret and oystercatcher.
Downs to the Sea will help carry out much-needed restoration work to a number of internationally-designated wildlife sites, such as RSPB Pulborough Brooks and RSPB Pagham Harbour in West Sussex. Watch this blue space!
To find out about the National Park’s ReNature initiative and to donate visit www.southdowns.gov.uk/renature/