Commons wildlife

The blackcap is one of many migrant birds that arrive in the Chilterns in spring, ready to breed. Although the male has a black cap, the female has a red cap. On spring mornings, black caps, along with many other birds, sing loudly to mark their territories and attract a mate. This dawn chorus is a real sign of spring and, with a trained ear, it’s possible to make out the many different songs. Birds feed and breed in a whole host of different trees, hedges and woodlands, so it is important to keep this variety in the Chilterns AONB and on its commons.

The bright yellow of gorse flowers are a familiar sight on the heathlands and grasslands of our commons. But did you know that they have a scent like coconut? This tough, evergreen shrub can grow to around 2.5 metres in height and has sharp spikes on its stems, which are actually its leaves. It flowers from early spring into summer, providing a source of nectar for bees and butterflies. It also makes good shelter for birds, such as stonechats (Saxicola rubicola) and yellowhammers (Emberiza citronella).

The orange tip is an unmistakeable butterfly of spring, flying from April to June in a wide range of habitats, including heathland, woodland and gardens. It is largely white, and the males have orange tips to their wings, while females have black tips. It has a mottled grey pattern on the underside of the wings. Females lay single orange eggs on plants such as garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolate) and cuckooflower (Cardamine pratensis). The caterpillars are green and well camouflaged.

The UK hosts three native species of newt: smooth (or common), palmate (Lissotriton helveticus) and great crested (Triturus cristatus); but it is the smooth newt that you are most likely come across in your garden or pond, or when out and about on your local common. The smooth newt can grow up to 10 cm in length. It is similar-looking to the palmate newt, but a lighter grey or brown, with a yellow or orange belly dotted with black spots that reach its throat. During the breeding season, males develop a wavy crest down their backs, although it’s not as big as that of the threatened great crested newt (which looks a bit like a small dinosaur!). In spring, adults emerge from their overwintering sites and find a pond to breed in. Larvae hatch out a few weeks later, looking a bit like tadpoles with feathery gills. Adults can be found hunting around ponds in summer, feeding themselves up on slugs and insects.

The UK hosts three native species of snake: adder, grass snake (Natrix natrix) and smooth snake (Coronella austriaca); but only the grass snake and adder can be found in the Chilterns. Grass snakes are common across all wetland and grassland habitats, while adders can be found on heaths and in woodlands. Adders are quite stocky and can grow to 80 cm long. They have a distinctive diamond-shaped pattern along their backs and a characteristic red eye with a cat-like slit; grass snakes have yellow eyes with a round pupil. The adder is our only venomous snake – it has a painful bite that can be dangerous for the young, elderly or infirm, but it doesn’t pose much of a threat to humans if left undisturbed. Adders hunt small mammals, lizards and ground-nesting birds. During spring and summer, snakes and other reptiles can be spotted basking in the early morning sun along paths, on log piles or near water. Snakes and other reptiles hibernate over winter.

Look out for badgers around dusk, particularly in Chilterns’ woodlands. They are the UK’s largest land-predator, measuring around 80 cm from nose to tail. They are easy to recognise with their familiar black-and-white striped heads and stocky, silver-grey bodies. Badgers live in family groups (clans) of up to 12 individuals in underground tunnels and chambers known as setts. During the day, nesting material (grass and bracken) may be brought out of the sett to air in the sunshine. Badgers have a wide-ranging diet, including slugs, earthworms, seeds, berries, rodents, birds and eggs.

The foxglove is a familiar flower of woodland, hedgerows and heaths that thrives when ground has been disturbed or the canopy is opened by falling trees. Its seeds can last for many years in the soil until light levels are suitable. It flowers between June and September and can grow to 1.5 m high. The name ‘foxglove’ is a corruption of the phrase ‘folk’s glove’ because fairy folk were said to wear the flowers as gloves. The whole plant is poisonous; however, the drug Digitalis is extracted from it and used to treat heart problems.

The large red damselfly can be found around the edges of ponds, lakes and ditches when breeding, but also on grasslands and in woodlands. Emerging in early spring, it lives up to its name – males are bright red with a black thorax (females are entirely black). The similar small red damselfly (Ceriagrion tenellum) is a much rarer species of Southern England, particularly the New Forest; as its name suggests, it is smaller and much more delicate looking. Look out for the large red resting on vegetation near the water, waiting for its insect-prey. Damselflies rest with their wings folded over their bodies, while dragonflies rest with them open.

The small and delicate purple toadstools of the amethyst deceiver fungus can be spotted among the leaf litter of wooded areas on our commons. Like most fungi, the parts above ground are just the fruiting bodies. These grow from an unseen network of tiny filaments and produce spores for reproduction. Fungi help to decompose rotting wood and recycle its nutrients back into the soil. Many fungi also help trees to feed on nutrients in the soil, their filaments forming a beneficial relationship with the tree’s roots. Do remember many fungi are poisonous and should not be picked or eaten.

One of our most iconic trees, the English oak is familiar to us as the bearer of acorns and lobed leaves. Broad, ancient, gnarly trees stand over time like the grandfather clocks of the forest; some live well over 500 years and grow more than 40 m tall. The wood is highly prized for buildings ships, houses and furniture. The English oak is also known as the ‘pedunculate oak’ because its acorns are borne on peduncles or stalks, whereas those of the sessile oak (Quercus petraea) are stalkless. Oaks provide valuable food and shelter for wildlife – from stag beetles to flycatchers, hairstreak butterflies to bracket fungi, all kinds of organisms enjoy these stalwarts of the countryside.

The much-loved, spiky, little European hedgehog was once common across a range of habitats – from hedgerows and woods, to grasslands and parks. But, today, it is under threat. Numbers have declined by a third due to road traffic collisions; trends for ‘tidy’ gardens without grassy areas and gappy hedges; the loss of farmland and hedgerow habitats; and the use of pesticides to reduce heir prey. Help your local hedgehogs by providing safe nesting and hibernating spots, such as leaf and log piles in the garden, and making sure there are holes in fences so they can move about – they can roam up to 4 km in one night in search of food! On autumnal evenings, look out for hedgehogs snuffling around our commons at dusk as they fill up their bellies ready for a long winter’s nap.

Purple swathes of blooming heather are an autumn delight on the heathlands of the Chilterns. There are three types of heather: ling (or common), bell (Erica cinerea) and cross-leaved heath (Erica tetralix). Ling heather has delicate, pink flowers loosely arranged along its stems, whereas bell heather has tiny, purple ‘bells’ clustered together. Heather flowers attract a wide variety of pollinating insects. A low-growing shrub that likes acidic soils, it is also an ideal garden and rockery plant.

Buzzard numbers have increased across the area in recent years. They kill rabbits, young pheasants and other small animals, and will also scavenge on carrion. They are stocky birds of prey, with broad, rounded wings that can reach a span of up to 1.25 m. When in flight, their wings make a V-shape as they soar, but it’s their short, rounded tails that really give them away – quite different to the distinctively forked tails of red kites. In fact, buzzards and red kites are surprisingly tolerant of each other and can often be seen flying together. Look for buzzards soaring over our commons, woods and grasslands.

The chaffinch is one of the most common birds to be found in Chilterns’ woodlands, parks, hedges and gardens. It has a metallic-sounding ‘pink-pink’ social call and a distinctive song that ends in a loud trill. It feeds on seeds, insects and fruit, and is attracted to open glades when foraging. Male chaffinches look particularly striking in their breeding plumage with grey heads and puffed-up pink chests, while females are a duller brown, with white should and wing patches.

Steeped in myth and legend, yews are some of our oldest trees. Growing to 20 m tall, they are only considered ‘ancient’ when they reach 900 years in age and may continue to live for thousands of years. They have sheltered kings and queens, were planted on the graves of plague victims to protect the dead, and are considered symbols of immortality – or doom! Today, yews can still be seen in churchyards across the Chilterns. Look for the evergreen, spiky, green leaves and red berries in winter. All parts of yew are poisonous, but they are prized for their wood, which was traditionally used to make bows, spears and tools.