Monks Wood wilderness: 60 years ago, scientists let a farm field rewild – here’s what happened

Broughton, Richard K.. 2021 Monks Wood wilderness: 60 years ago, scientists let a farm field rewild – here’s what happened. The Conversation.

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Abstract/Summary

In the archive of the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology there is a typed note from the 1960s that planted the seed of an idea. Written by Kenneth Mellanby, director of the Monks Wood Experimental Station, a former research centre in Cambridgeshire, UK, the note describes a four-hectare arable field that lies next to the station and the ancient woodland of the Monks Wood National Nature Reserve. After harvesting a final barley crop, the field was ploughed and then abandoned in 1961. The note reads: 'It might be interesting to watch what happens to this area if man does not interfere. Will it become a wood again, how long will it take, which species will be in it?' So began the Monks Wood Wilderness experiment, which is now 60 years old. A rewilding study before the term existed, it shows how allowing land to naturally regenerate can expand native woodland and help tackle climate change and biodiversity loss.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:	Biodiversity (Science Area 2017-)
Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:	Open Access article - full text available via Official URL link.
Additional Keywords:	biodiversity, birds, rewilding, woodland, farmland, tree planting, oak, UK wildlife, reforestation
NORA Subject Terms:	Ecology and Environment
Date made live:	14 Sep 2021 14:43 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/531053

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