Nature Spotter

A field guide for home education families

Before you begin

This guide is for identification interest only. Do not pick, touch, or eat any plant, berry, fungus, or other organism based solely on this guide. Many safe-looking species have dangerous lookalikes. Always wash hands after being outdoors. Remember: every plant and animal is part of a food web — even if you are confident in an ID, please look rather than pick. We take no responsibility for any harm arising from use of this guide.

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Nature Spotter

Suggest an Addition

Found a species we're missing? Spotted an error? Taken a great photo? We'd love to hear from you. All submissions are reviewed before inclusion.

Record a Sighting

Tell us what you saw, where and when. A photo you took yourself makes the record far more useful — the club can pass good records on to iRecord.

What did you see?

Species *

Certainty

How many?

When?

Date *

Time

Where?

Site

Where exactly?

Photos

I took these photos myself.

Add a photo to enable this.

Can we use your photos?

Your record and photos come to the Old Down Wildlife Group. Ticking these is entirely optional — your record is just as welcome either way.

Old Down can use my photos in its own work Newsletters, talks, this species guide, record-keeping, and funding or grant applications. Old Down can publish my photos publicly Website, social media and printed leaflets. This record can be sent to iRecord iRecord is the national wildlife database. Records there are publicly visible and help conservation. Your photos are not sent to iRecord — only the sighting details.

How should we credit you?

Leave blank if you’d rather not be named.

Please don’t send photos with recognisable people in them unless everyone in the picture is happy for you to. You can change your mind about any of this at any time — just email us.

Anything else?

Notes

Who are you?

Your name *

Your email

🔒 Admin Panel

No pending submissions.

📍

Our Locations

This guide focuses on wildlife spotted at two special local sites, plus South UK generally. Each has its own character and seasonal highlights.

Old Down

Basingstoke

24acres

12hachalk grassland

🦋priority site

Old Down is a remarkable 24-acre site of calcareous (chalk) grassland on the southern edge of Basingstoke. At its heart is a wildflower meadow rich with native grasses and wildflowers, surrounded by ancient hedgerows, copses, and tree verges that provide habitat corridors for wildlife.

The site is one of Hampshire's most important locations for the Small Blue butterfly, the county's smallest butterfly, recording some of the highest numbers in the county. Kidney Vetch, its sole food plant, grows here in abundance across the chalk slopes.

Spring brings carpets of Cowslips across the grassland, along with early-purple orchids and a succession of wildflowers through summer. Hedgerows of Hawthorn, Blackthorn, and Bramble provide nesting habitat for birds and food for autumn migrants.

Look out for

              Small Blue
              Cowslip
              Common Blue
              Marbled White
              Common Spotted Orchid
              Kestrel
              Skylark
            

Best times to visit

Spring Cowslips, early butterflies, nesting birds: April to May

Summer Peak butterfly season, orchids, full meadow: June to August

Autumn Haws and sloes, migrant birds, fungi: September to October

Sholing Valley

Southampton

LNRnature reserve

1000+species recorded

🌿urban wildlife

Sholing Valley Local Nature Reserve is a hidden gem tucked within suburban Southampton, a mosaic of ancient woodland, acid grassland, wetland fen, and scrub that supports an astonishing diversity of wildlife for an urban site.

The valley's acidic soils support heathland plants and specialist invertebrates rarely found in the wider Southampton area. The stream corridor creates a wet habitat that attracts dragonflies, damselflies, and amphibians including the Common Frog.

Over 1,000 species have been recorded in the valley, including numerous invertebrate species not otherwise found in the city. The ancient woodland holds veteran trees supporting lichens, mosses, and hole-nesting birds.

Look out for

              Common Frog
              Dragonflies
              Red Kite
              Peacock Butterfly
              Stinging Nettle
              Bramble
              Cow Parsley
            

Best times to visit

Spring Frog spawn, Cow Parsley, first butterflies: March to May

Summer Dragonflies, grassland flowers, invertebrates: June to August

Autumn Fungi, berry-laden scrub, fungi: September to November

South UK General

Hampshire & surrounds

Species marked as South UK General are widespread across Hampshire, Wiltshire, Dorset, and neighbouring counties. These are the common wildflowers, birds, and invertebrates you're likely to encounter on any walk in southern England, in hedgerows, gardens, woodland edges, and farmland.

If you spot something not recorded at Old Down or Sholing Valley, select South UK General when submitting a sighting suggestion.

About Old Down

A field guide to Old Down, Basingstoke

What is Old Down?

Old Down is 16 hectares of open chalk grassland, planted woodland and a narrow ancient woodland mainly of beech, together with Oak, Whitebeam, Holly, Sycamore and Yew. The open grassland was used to grow arable crops until around 2000 and is now being carefully managed to restore the diverse wildflowers associated with chalk soils. There are wonderful views from the highest point — also the location of an ancient burial ground — across the neighbouring countryside.

Why it's special

🦋

Priority site for the Small Blue Butterfly as identified by Butterfly Conservation — highest recorded numbers across all Hampshire sites

🌸

Many other butterfly species across meadow and woodland edge

🌿

Five species of orchid recorded on site

⭐

After more than 7 years of conservation work, areas of the site are of Local Nature Reserve quality

🐝

Managed to improve wildflower diversity, increase insect and bird species, and maintain chalk grassland habitat

The site today

Old Down is managed by the Old Down Group — a friendly team of volunteers dedicated to maintaining this 24-acre site of woodland and open grassland for both wildlife and local people. The site also has a children's playground. Look out for new additions coming soon including a running track, brass rubbing posts and climbing sculptures.

Get involved

Work parties run every Thursday 10am–12noon at Old Down, meeting at Old Down Hall. Monthly weekend work parties also run — check social media for dates.

New volunteers are always welcome. Free training is available through Basingstoke and Deane Council covering tool use, first aid and wildlife skills. No experience needed — just enthusiasm.

Contact & social media

Email: old.down.wildlife@gmail.com

Follow the Old Down Wildlife Group on Facebook for recent sightings and work party updates.

Getting there

Old Down
Beggarwood Road
Basingstoke RG22 4EX

Grid reference: SU59694881

Free parking on site.

View on Google Maps ↗

Do not pick, touch or eat anything based solely on this guide. Many species have dangerous lookalikes. Always wash hands after being outdoors. Remember — every plant is part of a food web. Please look, not pick.

View full disclaimer

Species data compiled from field records, Natural Basingstoke, and Basingstoke & Deane Borough Council conservation records. Images from Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licence.

Nature Spotter

Before you begin

Key dangers include

Nature Spotter

Suggest an Addition

Thank you

Record a Sighting

What did you see?

When?

Where?

Photos

Can we use your photos?

Anything else?

Who are you?

Thank you

🔒 Admin Panel

Spotted counts (this device)

Our Locations

Old Down

Look out for

Best times to visit

Sholing Valley

Look out for

Best times to visit

South UK General

About Old Down

What is Old Down?

Why it's special

The site today

Get involved

Contact & social media

Getting there