Exmoor Horses Arrive at Saksfjed Wilderness

Saksfjed Wilderness has become the first recipient of a total of 40 Exmoor horses from Rewilding Europe’s new large herbivore facility, the Natural Grazing Facility. The facility aims to connect supply and demand for large herbivores among rewilding organizations.

The 17 horses have been donated by Rewilding Europe as a supplement to an additional 23 horses purchased from the Dutch rewilding organization Grazelands Rewilding, bringing the total number of newcomers to Saksfjed Wilderness to 40 horses.

The 40 horses, released into two large enclosures of 300 and 450 hectares, have settled well into their new home. In the 450-hectare enclosure, they joined an existing herd of 10 Exmoor horses, and three foals have already been born since their arrival. The horses share the area with more than 150 Galloway cattle.

A Positive Impact on the Landscape

The more than 200 horses and cattle now present in the area have already had a significant positive impact on the landscape, increasing the diversity of both habitats and wildlife.

“Several sand pits have been created within the enclosures as a result of the animals digging and rolling, exposing a lot of sand,” says Thor Hjarsen, leader of Saksfjed Wilderness and senior biologist at the Hempel Foundation. “This is beneficial for the sprouting of new wildflowers and has also created opportunities for many ground-dwelling insects. For instance, we have identified several new species of bees and beetles.”

The horses and cattle have also helped open up dense forested areas, allowing more sunlight and warmth to reach the forest floor. This encourages the growth of flowering herbs, benefiting insects such as fritillary butterflies. We expect the positive impact of the grazing animals to increase even further in the coming year

Creating Local Engagement

The team behind Saksfjed Wilderness is working to facilitate learning, research, communication, and the development of best practices to inspire other landowners to restore nature with biodiversity and climate in mind—both in Denmark and beyond.

“The horses have really helped in this area,” says Thor Hjarsen. “The public has access to the area through 15 gates, and the animals have already attracted an increasing number of visitors. Additionally, we have organized popular guided tours for the local community as part of our awareness efforts on the horses and rewilding in general.”

We have also seen great interest from researchers and students, with numerous study plots and transects established to monitor biodiversity. This reflects the Hempel Foundation’s ambition to promote knowledge about rewilding and support the expansion of such projects