3 miles north of Penryn, you'll find the beautiful 45 acre Devichoys Wood. Devichoys dates back to the 1650s and is a wonderful example of unspoiled ancient woodland. 

Choose from two circular trails and make your way past gnarled sessile oaks, taking note of the 'coppiced' trees. Originating in the stone age, coppicing is a historic management technique which involves periodically felling trees and allowing them to regrow. Cornwall Wildlife Trust and Working Woodlands have been coppicing the area since 2016, regenerating the once neglected woodland and providing sustainable timber to the local area.

Horses were traditionally used to extract timber from the woodland.

The varied woodland structure that this process creates allows for a rich variety of wildlife to thrive. Open glades are filled with wildflowers, attracting insects like the brimstone butterfly which emerges early in spring. Thick scrub and bramble provide birds, such as warblers, with nest sites and safe foraging. Where the canopy gradually closes in, woodpeckers and tree creepers can be found. Coppicing can also facilitate wildlife corridors which allow species such as bees, butterflies and frogs to move freely between habitats.

Small native trees such as beech, holly and rowan grow below the canopy of oaks. You can also find common cow-wheat, an ancient woodland indicator, along the woodland rides. Take your eyes down to the woodland floor and you will likely see many different types of fungi. As the weather begins to warm you might even glimpse the unmistakable stinkhorn fungus, appearing with its green oval head covered in a smelly secretion to attract flies.

If you find yourself in the woodland at dusk, you could be lucky enough to spot bats flying overhead. Several species are found at the reserve, including the lesser horseshoe bat which is becoming increasingly rare in the UK. Other mammals recorded at the reserve include otters, rabbits and badgers.

TOP TIP: Don’t forget to listen out for the ‘drumming’ of the resident great spotted woodpecker, which uses this sound to attract a mate during breeding displays in spring. You might even catch a flash of red underneath its tail as it flies between trees, searching for berries and seeds.