SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD Ardennes horse Hermes, above with Ralph Mankee, broke out into a sweat this week as she hauled timber across boggy ground at a nature reserve near Abingdon.

Hermes has been working at Lashford Lane Fen nature reserve, part of a rare fenland habitat at Cothill. A special area of conservation, Cothill Fen is one of the most species-rich lowland fens in the UK.

During the past few decades, trees have soaked up water from the ground and covered areas which used to be ideal habitats for plants, insects and birds.

But this week, silver birch and ash trees have been felled and removed by Hermes in a Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust-run project.

Cothill Fen project officer Louise Print-Lyons, left, said: “Forestry with horses is better for the woodland environment and wildlife than modern mechanical equipment, which can damage the soil. A horse moving gently means much less damage is done to the ground and wildlife habitats.”

Rare fen flowers now expected to flourish include bright purple common-spotted and marsh orchids. To visit the reserve, get directions from bbowt.org.uk. No dogs are allowed.