Experts see stunning recovery of rare creatures after simple change at nature reserve: 'Exceeded expectations'

A number of rare species have returned to a nature reserve in England after the group in charge made a change to how it was taking care of the land. 

According to the BBC, Natural England, which leases Wybunbury Moss near Crewe in Cheshire from the Church Commissioners for England, recorded 169 species at the site, including several rare and endangered species. 

Rare species included the red-girdled mining bee, the yellowhammer bird, the brown hare, and the soprano pipistrelle bat. 

Several rare animal species have made their return to a nature reserve in Wybunbury Moss, near Crewe, Cheshire thanks to...

Posted by The Pet Collective on Sunday, August 10, 2025

Wybunbury Moss is one of just three floating peat bogs created by subsidence, or the shrinking or collapsing of land, in the U.K.. Floating peat bogs are created when a thick layer of peat sits atop a body of water. 

Natural England accomplished this feat by ceasing the use of fertilizer in the fields surrounding the bog, thereby cutting nutrient pollution.

The restoration of the land was such a success that Natural England said it "exceeded expectations." Those sentiments were echoed by Zara Gower of the Church Commissioners for England, who touted "remarkable biodiversity improvements" in the area. 

"The rapid return of rare and threatened species demonstrates the value of this partnership approach to land management," Gower said.

Natural England's efforts are part of a larger global movement to restore wilderness and encourage threatened and endangered species to thrive. 

In Thailand, recent appearances of the Asian black bear have ecologists celebrating their efforts. 

In Brazil, sightings of the golden lion tamarin have bolstered conservationists' push to protect the rainforest. 

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Back in England, a resident of Herefordshire spotted the previously thought to be locally extinct willow tit. 

Efforts like the one in Wybunbury Moss prove that restoring natural landscapes can go a long way toward bolstering efforts to save species from the brink of extinction.

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