Goats grazing on land with a Mediterranean feel. That is the future of Ventnor’s chalk downs, according to the National Trust’s South Wight Warden David Mears. The organisation has been granted £40,000, to carry out work on downland between Ventnor and Wroxall. Mr Mears said, “The long term vision for the chalk downs at Ventnor is of a landscape with a mixture of open chalk turf, and scattered areas of trees…We will need to maintain the number of goats at the right level to ensure that there is still enough tree cover and food for them, but also making sure that the trees do not take over the grassland again.” Goats were introduced in 1993, to some parts of National Trust grassland, to help maintain it. The organisation says the animals have already improved other parts of the Island, by munching their way through scrub to create impressive displays of flowers and butterflies. The National Trust wants to extend the goats’ grazing sites to the north facing slope of St Boniface Down and the south facing slope of Littleton Down, where scrub clearance by machine and by hand has proved too difficult. It plans to build new fencing to ensure they only eat what they are supposed to.