Nature Features

From birds of prey and rare butterflies, to adders and colourful fungi...Haldon Forest near Exeter is a wildlife watcher's paradise.

It's also a great place just to get some fresh air and go for a walk through the woods.

The forest is managed by the Forestry Commission, and it has created a number of easy walks - including the two mile play trail which is suitable for all ages and abilities.

The path may be a bit bumpy for wheelchairs, but it is flat and parts are okay for people with disabilities.

Cyclists and horse riders are also welcome.

What you can see and hear depends on the time of year, but there is always loads for children to do.

Haldon Forest ranger Ian Parsons

Haldon Forest ranger Ian Parsons explained: "We want children to go and explore, which is why we've got the Secret Path, which takes them through the trees.

"They can get off the paths and into the woods - it's like a natural play area.

"It's all about getting people active - you do about 10,000 steps in this walk."

Along the trail, there are thrones carved out of wood - including a storytelling throne - and even giant musical instruments.

The 3,500-acre forest is relatively young. It was established in the 1920s and is now a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) for its wildlife.

The forest is made up mostly of conifers. There are Scots pines and sittka spruce - which is the most numerous tree in Britain because the timber is used for paper and in the building industry.

Other trees are the lodgepole pine, an American species which is so named because it was used by American Indians for their tepees; silver birch, and douglas fir.

Douglas fir trees in Haldon Forest

The tallest tree in Haldon is a douglas fir - 42 metres and still growing. A section of the walk has douglas fir trees on each side, and if you crush their needles, they produce a lovely citrus aroma - which is why they are often used in pot pourri.

All the best pine furniture is made from douglas fir because of its high quality timber.

Scots Pines are good for nesting birds, and the Hobby - a bird of prey - nest here. If you leave the play trail (using the signposts), you can visit the Bird of Prey viewpoint, where you get tremendous views.

This is where you may also spot birds such as buzzards, sparrowhawks, goshawks, kestrels, ospreys, and peregine falcons.

Sparrowhawks particularly like the larch trees which line a section of the play trail walk.

During the spring and summer, nightjars come to stay in the forest. As their name suggests, they are usually only viewable during the hours of darkness.

They are red listed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), which means they have declined so much that they are globally threatened.

A magestic peregrine falcon (RSPB)

Haldon Forest is a nationally important site for nightjars, but 2007 hasn't been a good year for them here because of the wet weather which made their ground habitat too sodden.

The forest is also important for its butterflies - more than 30 species can be found, including the silver-washed fritillary and the pearl-bordered fritillary, which is Haldon's most important when it comes to conservation.

Fallow and roe deer live on the ridge of the forest - there are 600 fallow deer, some of which have been known to stray onto nearby roads. And dormice also live in the forest.

Perhaps the most amazing fact about Haldon Forest is that although it is 250 metres above sea level, this was once a seabed.

It may have been millions and millions of years ago, but there is still plenty of evidence of its watery past.

The land is dominated by flints, and from time to time you can still find fossilised sea urchins in the forest.

Haldon Forest is open all year, from 8am to 7pm during the summer and 8.30am to 5pm in the winter. There are toilets, and a cafe which is open on some days. Visit the Forestry Commission website for details.

There is a pay and display car park - £1 for four hours; £2 all day.