Endangered Dartmoor ponies handed new protection after cull fears

Dartmoor ponies will be protected at their current levels following fears of a potential cull, ministers have said.

Campaigners had raised concerns that new Natural England contracts requiring reduced grazing on the Devon moor’s commons could lead to the removal of up to 90% of the ponies.

But the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the animals will be removed from stocking rate calculations – meaning farmers would not face a choice between keeping ponies and maintaining sheep or cattle.

Defra said the long-term future of the ponies had been secured through a package of “new protections and financial support”.

Pony numbers will be monitored across the moor to make sure they remain stable, the government added.

Dartmoor hill ponies have been part of the landscape for 4,500 years, but their numbers have dropped from 6,000 25 years ago to fewer than 1,000 today, and the breed has now been declared endangered.