Chanstone Wood

Also within

Herefordshire County

Condition (Natural England)

Habitats

Coppiced woodland

Geology & landscape

Rock Type: Sandstone

Birds & fish recorded

Birds

Description

Area, 40.79 ha. 100.8 ac. Description An extensive area of ancient semi natural native broadleaved woodland lying on a hill of Old Red Sandstone in the south west of Herefordshire. The soils derived from the Old Red Sandstone series are here markedly calcareous and this is reflected in the richness and variety of trees, shrubs and ground vegetation found in the wood. Most of the site is dominated by sessile oak Quercus petraea and ash Fraxinus excelsior with a high proportion of field maple Acer campestre in the shrub layer. Birch Betula pendula, yew Taxus baccata and wych elm Ulmus glabra are also present in small numbers. Large leaved lime Tilia platyphyllos, one of our rarer native trees, also occurs. Besides field maple the shrub layer contains a number of other species including hazel Corylus avellana, hawthorn Crataegus monogyna and goat willow Salix caprea. The south eastern part of the wood is dominated by coppiced small leaved lime Tilia cordata and sessile oak. Some hazel is also present. The ground vegetation is rich and varied and reflects the basic nature of the soils. Dog's mercury Mercurialis perennis, yellow archangel Lamiastrum galeobdolon, enchanter’s nightshade Circaea lutetiana and ramsons Allium ursinum are species which are found throughout the wood. Bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta is also abundant and particularly in the area of small leaved lime coppice. Early purple orchid Orchis mascula and white helleborine Epipactis helleborine are amongst the less common species found. The woodland provides a valuable habitat for birds such as pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca and redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus.

Species mentioned

Insects to look out for

These moths, butterflies and beetles are known to feed on plants recorded at this site, and carry a notable UK conservation status — but a host-plant being present doesn't mean the insect has actually been recorded here. Treat this as "worth watching for," not a confirmed sighting.

Host-plant data: Cook et al. (2025), Traits data for the butterflies and macro-moths of Great Britain and Ireland, 2024, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology / Butterfly Conservation; and Padovani et al. (2020), Database of Insects and their Food Plants (DBIF), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (both Open Government Licence). Contains data supplied by UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology.