Local reserves

Situated on the Chiltern escarpment and adjoining The Ridgeway National Trail with superb views across the Tring Gap and Vale of Aylesbury, this reserve supports splendid wildflowers and up to thirty species of butterfly.

One of the finest areas of marshy grassland in Hertfordshire. It is at its best in late spring when it is carpetted with orchids.

A peaceful refuge for both wildlife and people, where great crested grebes breed.

Broadwater Lake forms part of the Mid-Colne Valley SSSI and is nationally important for waterbirds.

Discover, in a corner of Cassiobury Park, a wildlife haven close to the heart of a bustling town.

This is the best remaining part of the ancient Enfield Chase with diverse woodland, meadow and wetland habitats which support an abundance of wildlife.

A fantastic woodland for bluebells and anemones in the spring - and diverse fungi in the autumn

A wonderful reserve for spotting brown hares, fallow deer and farmland birds, with a nice bluebell display in May.

A rare Hertfordshire open heathland combined with woodland, two large ponds and several smaller heathy pools, where dragonflies are abundant.

An area of common land between the River Stort and the Stort Navigation. About two thirds of the site is in Essex and a third in Hertfordshire, and it is one of the finest surviving unimproved grassland sites in the two counties.

A picturesque valley of pasture and old parkland trees near Hemel Hempstead

Possibly the most varied piece of woodland in Middlesex, Old Park Wood is an ancient woodland teeming with wildlife.

Patmore Heath is an outstanding example of grass heathland, now a scarce habitat in the south east. With its ponds, the reserve is rich in flora and insects.

Lying on the outskirts of Stevenage, Pryor's Wood is an impressive mixed woodland that is rich in wildlife.

A wetland haven for birds and water voles

At the farthest end of the popular Stanborough Park Lakes is a quiet and rich wildlife haven, including the third largest reedbed in Hertfordshire.

This reserve is situated in quiet and typically English countryside near Tewin. Wildlife abounds particularly butterflies, birds and badgers.

A former quarry which supports the rare grizzled skipper butterfly