The shiny, translucent porcelain fungus certainly lives up to its name in appearance. It can be seen growing on beech trees and dead wood in summer and autumn.
Strawberry Cottage Wood is one of GWT’s less-known reserves. But it’s our local one, just over five miles from Abergavenny. Usually, we’d be there on the second Sunday of every month, doing…
The shoulders of the forest bug are distinctive - they are square-cut, almost rounded, unlike the other 'spiked' shield bugs. This bug can be found in woodlands, feeding on the sap of…
The Natterer's bat can found across the UK, although it is a scarce species. It prefers to forage low down among trees, often taking prey directly from the foliage.
Our largest bat, the noctule roosts in trees and can be seen flying over the canopy in search of insect-prey, such as cockchafers. Like other bats, it hibernates over winter.
A recent colonist to south east England, the metallic-green willow emerald damselfly spends much of its time in the willow and alder trees that overhang ponds, lakes and canals.
A pretty and distinctive little waterbird, the mandarin duck was introduced from the Far East as its name suggests. Oddly for a duck, it nests in trees, sometimes high above the water.
The turkeytail is a very colourful bracket fungus that grows throughout the year, but is at its best in the autumn. Its circular caps can be seen growing in tiers on trees and dead wood.
Wet woodlands in the UK can be wild, secretive places. Tangles of trailing creepers, tussocky sedges and lush tall-herbs conceal swampy pools and partially submerged fallen willow trunks, likely…
Sir David Attenborough has travelled the world in search of wildlife and wild spaces. But much closer to home, he can explore the hidden woodland at Crane Park Island, discover flying stag beetles…
The noble chafer is a rare and beautiful metallic-green beetle that can be found in traditional orchards. It is on the wing over summer, feeding on umbellifers. The larvae live in the decaying…
