With over 445 hectares (1,099 acres) of land, Bushy Park is the second largest Royal Park in London and there is an incredible range of wildlife and habitats within its walls.
Bushy Park has a distinctive landscape, shaped in part by its history as a royal hunting ground but also by its many ponds and streams. These are fed with water by the Longford River created in 1637 by Charles I to bring water to Hampton Court Palace. The Longford runs for 12 miles from the north of Heathrow airport down through Bedfont, Feltham, and Hampton, through the park and on to Hampton Court.
Bushy Park is a deer park. Red and Fallow Deer still roam freely throughout the park, just as they did when Henry VIII used to hunt here.
Bushy Park is of national importance for its insects and other invertebrates, with 123 nationally scarce or threatened species recorded so far.
There is a long list of birds that can be found in Bushy Park which includes all three native woodpeckers, kestrel, tawny owl and a range of waterfowl.
Bushy Park's many ponds and streams are home to a very good range of fish including perch, roach, chub, bream and rudd.
