What would you find if you go into the woods today? Form 3 have been taking advantage of the fabulous Yorkshire weather and our wonderful surroundings here at Fyling Hall to look at woodland and garden habitats. Following our trip to Grouse Hill to look at the moorland habitat, no bus journey was required; just a short walk up the track and into the woods, before heading back down to the school gardens, where Trevor and Marina are doing so much to create a wildlife haven and encourage a wide variety of species.

With keys and books to hand, we managed to find and identify many different animals and plants, including centipedes, millipedes, woodlice, slugs, spiders, beetles, orchids and wood sorrel, which is lovely in a salad, having a lemony taste. We also found a grove snail (Cepaea nemoralis) in the school gardens. The colour of the shell of Cepaea nemoralis is variable; it can be reddish, brownish, yellow or whitish, with or without one or more dark-brown colour bands. This variation in the colour of the shell may have evolved in response to the snail’s preferred habitat or to evade predators. 

We had a lovely afternoon in the sunshine and all agreed that we are very lucky to be able to learn in such a special environment.

Karen Richardson, Junior School teacher