Wildlife trust seeks £470k to protect woodland

Hanley Dingle has been described as a "biodiversity haven"

Conservationists are trying to raise £470,000 to help protect an ancient woodland site.

Hanley Dingle in Worcestershire is a "distinctive ecosystem", and Worcestershire Wildlife Trust is asking for support in its attempt to buy land surrounding the site.

The trust has identified 16 hectares of adjoining land as being essential to continuing the "preservation and enhancement" of the "vital sanctuary."

Dominique Cragg from the trust said “there’s a limit to what we can do in the dingle itself", which prompted them to look at the surrounding land.

So far £43,047 has been raised through donations.

Securing the site, Ms Cragg said, would protect native wilderness from chemicals coming from surrounding arable land while creating new habitats by encouraging more biodiversity into the area.

"The more habitats you have, the more animals you’ll have in those habitats – and the more biodiversity, the better.”

She said the project also hoped to reveal whether mammals such as hazel dormice and pine martens were in the area.

The site has been described as a "vital sanctuary"

Hanley Dingle's damp and humid environment has welcomed liverworts, different species of fern, mosses and lichen.

The ecology has been able to thrive due to the steep sides of the dingle combined with the ancient woodland, the trust said.