Ancient Woodland and its Wildlife

Ancient woodland — woodland continuously present since 1600 — supports extraordinary biodiversity developed over centuries, with irreplaceable welfare value for specialist species found nowhere else.

Key Facts

Ancient woodland covers only 2.5% of the UK land area but supports 50% of priority woodland species
Ancient woodland is defined as land continuously wooded since at least 1600 in England and 1750 in Scotland
Species indicators of ancient woodland include bluebell, wood anemone, herb Paris and many specialist invertebrates
Ancient woodland cannot be recreated — it takes centuries for the soil ecology and species communities to develop
The Woodland Trust campaigns to protect ancient woodland from development and inappropriate management

Welfare Considerations

Ancient woodland provides welfare benefits for species through its structural complexity — multiple canopy layers, standing deadwood, diverse understorey and complex soil ecology create niches for thousands of species. Specialist ancient woodland invertebrates, lichens and fungi depend on conditions that cannot be replicated in newer woodland. The loss of ancient woodland to development is an irreversible welfare harm at the landscape scale — every hectare destroyed eliminates centuries of accumulated biodiversity. Sensitive management, including deadwood retention and appropriate deer management, maintains welfare value for woodland-dependent species.

What You Can Do

Support the Woodland Trust at www.woodlandtrust.org.uk which campaigns to protect ancient woodland
Object to planning applications that would destroy or damage ancient woodland
Plant a tree in or near ancient woodland to extend its area but never within the ancient woodland itself
Record ancient woodland indicator species using iRecord and contribute to the national dataset
Advocate for ancient woodland as a material planning consideration that should almost never be overridden