Common couch
Common couch is a tall, tuft-forming grass of roadside verges, waste ground and arable land. It is very tough and can shade out more delicate plants. Look for flat, blade-like leaves and thin…
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Chwilio
Gower, Swansea & Neath-Port Talbot volunteer days
Volunteer with our practical work parties on the nature reserves around Gower, Swansea and Neath-Port Talbot.
Arrowhead
Arrowhead is an aquatic plant of shallow water and slow-moving waterways. In bloom over summer, it displays small, white flowers, but it is the arrow-shaped leaves that are most distinctive.
Bog asphodel
The yellow, star-like flowers of bog asphodel brighten up our peat bogs, damp heaths and moors in early summer, attracting a range of pollinating insects.
Wild thyme
The delightful fragrance of wild thyme can punctuate a summer walk over a chalk grassland. It forms low-growing mats with dense clusters of purple-pink flowers.
Water Voles thriving on the River Thaw – a symbol of hope for nature recovery
Following a successful reintroduction to the River Thaw last summer, conservationists have released a further 140 Water Voles to help bring back the UK’s fastest declining mammal to South Wales.…
Allt Pencnwc, Ystrad Aeron, Ceredigion
This relatively long and narrow reserve comprises a steep, ancient semi-natural woodland that drops from improved pasture to the north, down to the Afon Gwili which runs along the southern…
European badger
Badgers are the UK’s largest land predator and are one of the most well-known British species. They are famed for their black and white stripes and sturdy body, using their strong front paws to…
Common froghopper
In spring and summer, look out for 'cuckoo-spit' - the frothy mass of bubbles that appears on plant stems everywhere. This is actually the protective covering for the nymphs of the tiny…
Dyer's greenweed
Dyer's greenweed is a classic plant of hay meadows, heaths and open woodlands. It has upright stems with loose clusters of bright yellow, pea-like flowers in summer.
Hawfinch
The hawfinch is the UK's largest finch, with an enormous bill powerful enough to crush a cherry stone. Despite their size, they are typically elusive, especially during the summer nesting…
Pepper saxifrage
Pepper saxifrage is a classic plant of unimproved hay meadows and roadside verges. It's upright, branching stems carry umbrella-like clusters of creamy-yellow, flowers in summer.