Edgbarrow Woods is a Local Nature Reserve on the northern outskirts of Sandhurst in

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

. It is owned and managed by

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin *Wellington College, Wellington, New Z ...

Geography and site

This site contains many habitats, including semi-natural high forest, wet and dry

heathland A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a cooler ...

and acidic, unimproved, lowland grassland.

History

The area has royal associations, being a former royal hunting ground created in the 11th century by

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

. In 2002 the site was declared as a local nature reserve by

Bracknell Forest Borough Council Bracknell Forest Council, also known as Bracknell Forest Borough Council is the local authority of Bracknell Forest in Berkshire, England. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. It ...

Fauna

The site has the following fauna:

Mammals

Common noctule The common noctule (''Nyctalus noctula'') is a species of insectivorous bat common throughout Europe, Asia, and North Africa. Description The common noctule's short fur is dark brown after moulting in June (males) or July/August (females); lat ...

Invertebrates

Silver-studded blue The silver-studded blue (''Plebejus argus'') is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. It has bright blue wings rimmed in black with white edges and silver spots on its hindwings, lending it the name of the silver-studded blue. ''P. argus'' can be ...

Birds

Eurasian bullfinch The Eurasian bullfinch, common bullfinch or bullfinch (''Pyrrhula pyrrhula'') is a small passerine bird in the finch family, Fringillidae. In Anglophone Europe it is known simply as the bullfinch, as it is the original bird to bear the name bull ...

Eurasian hobby The Eurasian hobby (''Falco subbuteo'') or just hobby, is a small, slim falcon. It belongs to a rather close-knit group of similar falcons often considered a subgenus '' Hypotriorchis''. Taxonomy and systematics The first formal description of ...

Dartford warbler The Dartford warbler (''Curruca undata'') is a typical warbler from the warmer parts of western Europe and northwestern Africa. It is a small warbler with a long thin tail and a thin pointed bill. The adult male has grey-brown upperparts and is d ...

Flora

The site has the following special flora amongst others: *''

Succisa pratensis ''Succisa pratensis'', also known as devil's-bit or devil's-bit scabious, is a flowering plant in the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae. It differs from other similar species in that it has four-lobed flowers, whereas small scabious and field s ...

'' or devil's-bit scabious *''

Drosera rotundifolia ''Drosera rotundifolia'', the round-leaved sundew, roundleaf sundew, or common sundew, is a carnivorous species of flowering plant that grows in bogs, marshes and fens. One of the most widespread sundew species, it has a circumboreal distribut ...

'' or common sundew

References

{{Local Nature Reserves in Berkshire Parks and open spaces in Berkshire Nature reserves in Berkshire Local Nature Reserves in Berkshire