What's on
Sandlings Heath
Known locally as the ‘Sandlings’, it’s hard to believe that this wild landscape was actually created by humans and sheep following the clearance of the original woodland thousands of years ago. The sandy, free-draining acidic soils led to the development of a characteristic heathland flora, dominated by heather, as farmers cleared the trees and introduced sheep to graze the land.
Heathland is as important for wildlife as it is beautiful to look at so, to maintain this vital and historic landscape and to prevent it eventually reverting back to woodland, careful management is essential and grazing has been successfully reintroduced in some areas.
What can be seen here…
Plants: Bell heather, common heather, heath bedstraw, heath speedwell, sheep’s sorrel, harebell
Birds: Nightar, woodlark, stonechat, tree pipit, stone-curlew, dartford warbler
Other wildlife: Silver studded blue butterfly, grayling butterfly, ant-lion, common lizard and adder