Surveying Woodlands
Woodlands, in the past, were often vital to the local community. They provided food in the form of mushrooms, berries and nuts. They also were an important source of wood and timber, which were used for fuel, fencing, furniture, houses and general construction. Woodlands also provided products including oak bark for tanning, and charcoal for cooking. Today they should be equally valued for their beauty, wildlife and as places for recreation.
Surveys can identify which woodlands in your area are best for wildlife, and what flora and fauna they contain.
Have you seen…?
Woodland is home to more threatened species of wildlife than any other UK habitat, and areas of woodland can be the most biodiverse of all UK habitats. There have recently been worrying declines in some woodland species. Your survey could help to identify the presence or absence of at risk species and help develop plans to protect them.
For a list of Norfolk woodland wildlife species that are Biodiversity Action Plan Species click here.
You don’t have to be an expert…
...to gather really interesting information. If you can identify rooks and their nests in the tops of trees you can do a rookery survey. If you can recognise bluebells you can record which of your local woods have bluebells and find the best bluebell wood in the parish.
Why not start a simple survey today and put your parish wildlife on the map?
Surveys can identify which woodlands in an area are the best for wildlife – often these will be the oldest woodlands, usually referred to as ancient woodlands. However, even newly planted woodlands can be brilliant for wildlife. The best way to know what wildlife is benefitting from a wooded area is to carry out a survey.
Top tips:
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You must have permission from the landowner to survey a woodland if the survey involves walking off public footpaths or public roads
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Be alert to safety – do not survey woodlands in strong winds and be aware that wet woodlands such as alder and willow carrs may be too wet to access safely
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Knowing where you are in a wood can be difficult – familiarise yourself with pathways and the basic layout of the wood before carrying out any survey work
How do we find out what wildlife is found in our wood?
Need some inspiration?
Discover just some of the woodland surveys people have been carrying out in Norfolk.
Would you like to tell us about your woodland survey? Click here.
Download woodland survey forms here.
Who you gonna call…?
Identification of groups such as fungi, lichens, mosses, ferns and woodland invertebrates may be difficult to include in surveys without expert advice. Telephone Norfolk Wildlife Trust’s Wildlife Information Service – 01603 598333 – and we may be able to point you in the direction of a group who could help.
It’s MAGIC…
MAGIC is a web-based interactive map service which brings together environmental information from across government bodies. On this website you can view some ancient woodland records. Go to
www.magic.gov.uk click on the ‘static map’ button, followed by the ‘regional maps’ button.
Need to brush up on your tree id?
Would you like to learn how to identify trees? To find out about workshops and walks in Norfolk check out our
event section.
For all your surveying needs…
You may find the following books, dvds, cds and equipment helpful when carrying out a bird survey:
Get the low down on Norfolk trees
Related questions
Surveying woodlands – How can I tell if my tree is ancient?
Use survey form m
As a guideline, if the girth of your tree is
greater than the following measurements, it is likely to be an ancient tree:
Species
|
Girth |
Hawthorn
Field maple, rowan
Alder, ash, beech
Lime, oak, sycamore
Sweet chestnut, yew |
2.5m
3m
5m
5.5m
6m |
NB: The girth of the tree trunk is measure at 1.5m from the ground, all the way around the trunk.
Surveying woodlands
Surveying woodlands – How do I ascertain the history of the wood?
Many traditional practices such as gamekeeper’s gibbets, charcoal burning, chair bodging, harvesting of coppice poles and gathering wild foods have died out – sadly, there are usually few written records of these activities. However, there may be older local residents who can still remember details of the history of the wood, or have old photos or records. Making a note of these can help build up a history of the wood.
When surveying woodlands, why not take note of current ways local woods are used and managed through photos and written accounts? This could produce a record which will be valuable in the future.
Surveying woodlands – How do I find out what types of woodland there are locally?
Use survey form n
This involves visiting each area of woodland included in your survey area and identifying the dominant tree species and the general topography and main features of the wood. Surveying woodlands