Wildlife and habitats
Brede High Woods is a nature-lovers paradise, with an outstanding reputation for wildlife. Thousands of species rely on the site, from the smallest, rarest of beetles and beautiful butterflies to large mammals, such as deer and badgers.
The mix of ancient and secondary woods, streams, heath and grassland means you can spot wildlife all year round. Carpets of bluebells light up the woods in spring, wild flowers attract butterflies in summer, and vivid autumn leaves – their hues matched on the ground by colourful fungi - last into the winter.
Animals
Brede High Woods is home to an array of threatened, diverse and unusual species. The ponds and streams provide the perfect habitats for water voles and great crested newts, as well as the strange eel-like brook lamprey, while spotted flycatchers can be seen along the woodland edges.
Renowned for its invertebrates, Brede High Woods is the only known UK location of the flea beetle (Longitarsus longiseta), previously thought to be extinct in the UK. The acid grassland also has a population of glow-worm, a Sussex priority species.
Bats are often on the wing at dusk during the summer months and if you’re patient and quiet, and you may see smaller creatures, such as weasels. Foxes and badgers are both common, but badgers rarely come out before dark. You may see roe and fallow deer, and there is increasing evidence of the presence of wild boar.