Published Research
Boothby Wildland Impact Report 2022-2025
-
Published June 2026
The first Boothby Wildland Impact Report is a snapshot of what landscape-scale, evidence-led Nature recovery is delivering so far.
Across four impact pillars (Resilience, Community, Discovery and Wonder ) we’re beginning to see measurable change.
Highlights include:
-1,413 BNG units added to the national register
-138,000 tonnes of carbon to be sequestered over the next 50 years
-58% agreed increase in public rights of way (to 25km)
-3,346 volunteer hours contributed
-22% uplift in species detected vs baseline, 108% increase in overall biodiversity
-1.9 million species observations recorded
-14 student projects and 9 academic research collaborationsImportantly, this report also explains how we measure success and why confidence builds over time as datasets grow.
The report was overseen by Nattergal’s Data Analyst, Daniella Rabaiotti, ensuring a robust and evidence-led assessment of our impact. Huge thanks to everyone else who contributed.
Using landscape biodiversity metrics to assess rewilding: A comparison of the Knepp Estate and an agricultural baseline at Boothby Wildland
-
Published: September 2025
This study tackles one of the most pressing ecological challenges of our time: how to measure the success of rewilding. While traditional biodiversity assessments often focus on species richness at a single site (α-diversity), this research expands the lens to include β-diversity -the variation in species composition across landscapes - offering a more nuanced view of ecological recovery.
Using three years of plant survey data (2022–2024), the team compared two landscapes at different stages of rewilding:
Boothby Wildland, Nattergal's former arable farm in the early stages of rewilding.
Knepp Estate, our inspiration and well-known rewilding site with over 20 years of ecological transformation.
Their findings confirmed that Knepp’s plant communities are relatively stable, while Boothby’s are undergoing rapid change - an exciting sign of ecological dynamism. The study also explored how different herbivory regimes influence recovery and demonstrated that spatial metrics for phylogenetic diversity can effectively distinguish between rewilded and degraded landscapes.
The Nattergal Report on Stakeholder Engagement Best Practice in Landscape-Scale Nature Recovery Projects
-
Published October 2024
Public and stakeholder engagement are key to improving environmental land-use decision-making, natural resource management, and achieving mutually beneficial outcomes for individuals, communities, and society.
Developed for the Boothby Wildland Landscape Recovery project, and funded via the DEFRA Landscape Recovery Development Phase, the report was led by the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI) at the University of Gloucestershire and the Leverhulme Centre for Nature Recovery at Oxford University, with the objective of establishing a framework for enhancing and embedding stakeholder engagement.
Expanding on earlier evidence-led research, the report provides a series of tailored considerations designed to inform engagement strategies for land-use decision-making, with a view to achieving wide-ranging environmental, economic, and societal benefits.
When quoting this report, please use the following citation: Davis, J., Hafferty, C., Ingram, J., & Short, C. (2024). The Nattergal Report on Stakeholder Engagement Best Practice for Landscape-scale Nature Recovery Projects. Carried out by the Countryside and Community Research Institute: University of Gloucestershire, UK
The inadequacy of current carbon storage assessment methods for rewilding: A Knepp Estate case study
-
Nancy Burrell, January 2024
This research article challenges traditional methods of estimating carbon storage. Lead author Nancy Burrell stated:
“We've been so fixated on tree plantations as carbon offsets that we’ve neglected to examine or understand the contribution that could come from smaller, non-forestry species. We have no idea how much carbon they might store, not only above ground but also below ground in their roots – and how this storage may be stimulated and enhanced by the browsing of the free-roaming herbivores that drive rewilding projects.”
Knepp Wildland Carbon Project
-
Published November 2021
In this landmark study, Nattergal, Arup and the Knepp Estate, together with our key research partners, Queen Mary University London, Treeconomy and Agricarbon, have demonstrated a higher than anticipated carbon sequestration rate on land being rewilded.
Using a range of data capture techniques including LiDAR scanning, drones, Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry and soil carbon audits, the report provides pivotal evidence to help fill data gaps around the wider climate benefits of the dynamic habitat mosaics and soil health recovery that emerge through rewilding.
The data will enable carbon driven investment into a much greater diversity of nature-based solutions. In the case of rewilding, this means so much than carbon sequestration alone, with the added benefits of biodiversity uplift, community engagement, natural flood management and nutrient mitigation.
-