Armchair Naturalist - Woods versus forests
Monday, 1st June 2020

Woodland is also considered to be an area covered with vegetation and trees but here in the UK, woods are not as big as forests.
Urban woodland can often be found in towns and cities usually within parks. These have generally been created for the benefit of humans. Children especially can learn scientific and social skills in woods and forests, but they are there for all of us to enjoy.
Ancient woodlands are the most important of them all. They are classed as areas of woodland that have been in the position since the 1600s. This is when maps became more accurate and indicated masses of wooded areas that remained untouched for hundreds of years. Left alone by humans, they have developed unique colonies of fungi, insects and plants, like wood anemone and small-leaved lime and not forgetting the strangely named lemon slug.

Unfortunately, woodland bird populations are in decline, so we need to protect our woodland habitats now more than ever.
Birds like the Blackcap, Bullfinch, and Nightingale as well as birds of prey such as the Barn Owl and Buzzard all favour these expanses of trees and leafy canopies.
Also, animals such as badgers, deer, foxes and wild boar may consider this habitat 'home' but - with proper land management and preserving these areas - we can all help to ensure that these treasure troves of our countryside are here for many more years to come.
Written by Angela