Living with spiders
Every autumn, headlines warn about spiders invading our homes. But what’s the real story with our eight-legged neighbours?
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How we manage natural landscapes
Managing Natural Landscapes - Avon Wildlife Trust manages nature reserves across the region, and looks after other land in partnership with farmers and landowners. From the rolling hills and valleys of the Mendips and Cotswolds, to the sweep of the Severn Estuary and its low-lying wetlands, our region’s landscapes are inspiring, varied and beautiful. And we’re working hard to help wildlife thrive in ancient woodlands, open wildflower grassland and coastal wetlands across Avon.
Grassland
Flower-rich grasslands, full of wildflowers such as orchids, snake's head fritillaries and bird's-foot trefoil support an abundance of insects, from bumblebees to butterflies.
Great diving beetle
The great diving beetle is a large and voracious predator of ponds and slow-moving waterways. Blackish-green in colour, it can be spotted coming to the surface to replenish the air supply it…
Calaminarian grassland
This is a strange, sparse habitat of grassland growing on old mining tracks and slag heaps, on river gravels and naturally exposed metal-rich soils in the mountains. Only the toughest metal-loving…
Amazing graze: How nature helps us manage landscapes
Grazing animals play a crucial role in managing grassland areas, including those on Avon Wildlife Trust’s nature reserves.
Lowland dry acid grassland
Sprinkled with diminutive, short-living flowers in spring and parched dry by July, this is a habitat of heathlands, coastal grasslands and ancient parkland.
Team Wilder Community Wildflower Meadows
Learn from local community groups who have created and maintained wildflower meadows. Be part of Team Wilder and support actions for nature at home and in the community to benefit people and wildlife.
Great spider crab
Despite its name, the great spider crab is actually smaller than the more common European spider crab.
Lowland calcareous grassland
Typical of softly rolling pastoral landscapes, the short, aromatic turf of lowland calcareous grassland is flower-rich and humming with insects in the summer. Its long use by humans lends it an…
Team Wilder Create a Mini Meadow at home
Create a mini meadow at home in your garden to look beautiful and create important habitat space for wildlife. Be part of Team Wilder and take action for nature.
Upland calcareous grassland
Limited in distribution, this sweetly-scented, short-cropped, springy grassland is famed for its abundance of rare and scarce species.