Langley Wood is a large area of ancient oak woodland that marks the northern tip of the New Forest. Main habitats: woodland Features of interest: The reserve has been named a Site of Special Scientific Interest because of the variety of woodland habitat, woodland birds that breed on site and rare lichens that live on the older trees. It’s also part of the New Forest Special Area of Conservation because of the oak woods and the rare wet alder woodland that can be found along its watercourses. The site is a home to a wide range of insects, including rare butterflies, beetles and moths. Almost 600 species of fungi have been found in the wood as well as dormice, bats and rare plants like yellow bird’s nest. It’s also an excellent habitat for woodland birds including cuckoo, hawfinch, nightjar, redstart, wood warbler, spotted flycatcher, lesser spotted woodpecker and tree pipit. In May the bluebells come in to flower and some parts of Langley are covered in a layer of the characteristic purple flowers. At the end of autumn, the deer rutting season begins and the strange calls of the bucks can be heard as they gather for the rut. Now the leaves have fallen, large herds of deer can be seen. Directions The nearest train station is Salisbury. A bus service runs from Salisbury to Lover, which is the nearest village to the reserve. See the Traveline south west website for details. The reserve is 10 miles southeast of Salisbury and is most easily found by exiting the A36 between Salisbury and Southampton on to the B3079 at Landford. Hamptworth Road is the first right hand turn and the entrance to the NNR is 2.5 miles along this road. There is a small car park at the reserve. There are limited public footpaths to the reserve entrance with no continuous link that avoids roads from the village of Lover. Contact To find out more about the reserve, contact site staff on 07771 944 557.