Bradfield Woods National Nature Reserve

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Overview

Bradfield Woods NNR is a unique working wood which has been under continuous traditional coppice management for over seven centuries, fulfilling local needs for firewood and hazel products. Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management where stems are cut at ground level promoting vigorous re-growth. Some ash coppice stools in Bradfield Wood, which is also known as Felsham Wood, are thought to be over 1,000 years old. As the coppice shoots regenerate, their dense bushy growth provides excellent cover for migrant songbirds such as the garden warbler, blackcap and willow warbler. Resident mammals include the stoat, yellow-necked mouse, dormouse and badger. On sunny summer days the sheltered rides create the prefect habitat for 24 species of butterfly. Of special note is the white admiral butterfly which can be seen sipping nectar from the flowers of bramble, or look up into the top of the oaks to catch a glimpse of a purple hairstreak.

Location

Gedding

About the area

Suffolk is Constable country, where the county’s crumbling, time-ravaged coastline spreads itself under wide skies to convey a wonderful sense of remoteness and solitude. Highly evocative and atmospheric, this is where rivers wind lazily to the sea and notorious 18th-century smugglers hid from the excise men.

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Bradfield Woods National Nature Reserve

Gedding

01449 737996

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Bradfield Woods National Nature Reserve

Recommended by

Overview

Bradfield Woods NNR is a unique working wood which has been under continuous traditional coppice management for over seven centuries, fulfilling local needs for firewood and hazel products. Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management where stems are cut at ground level promoting vigorous re-growth. Some ash coppice stools in Bradfield Wood, which is also known as Felsham Wood, are thought to be over 1,000 years old. As the coppice shoots regenerate, their dense bushy growth provides excellent cover for migrant songbirds such as the garden warbler, blackcap and willow warbler. Resident mammals include the stoat, yellow-necked mouse, dormouse and badger. On sunny summer days the sheltered rides create the prefect habitat for 24 species of butterfly. Of special note is the white admiral butterfly which can be seen sipping nectar from the flowers of bramble, or look up into the top of the oaks to catch a glimpse of a purple hairstreak.

Location

Gedding

About the area

Area image

Suffolk is Constable country, where the county’s crumbling, time-ravaged coastline spreads itself under wide skies to convey a wonderful sense of remoteness and solitude. Highly evocative and atmospheric, this is where rivers wind lazily to the sea and notorious 18th-century smugglers hid from the excise men.

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Nearby places to stay

View all (8)