Richmond Park is a site of both national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It is London's largest Site of Special Scientific Interest, a National Nature Reserve and a Special Area of Conservation.
Richmond Park is a top UK site for ancient trees, particularly oaks, which have great historic and wildlife importance. The trees and associated decaying wood support nationally endangered species of fungi, as well as a remarkable range of nationally scarce invertebrates such as the cardinal click beetle and the stag beetle. Over one thousand species of beetle (more than one quarter of the British list) have been recorded in the park.
This incredible environment has been created by centuries of grazing by herds of red and fallow deer.
Richmond Park, originally a deer-hunting park, still has 300 Red Deer and 350 fallow deer. The deer in the park are wild animals.
Read more...Bird life in Richmond Park is hugely varied with around 144 species recorded over the last 10 years and 63 breeding species, including all three native woodpeckers, kestrels, owls and a range of waterfowl.
Read more...Centuries of grazing by deer have helped us to maintain a very special habitat - the largest area of Lowland Acid Grassland in the London area.
Read more...A remarkable range of invertebrates lives in the Park. Records so far include 139 spider species, 546 butterfly and moth species and over 1350 beetle species.
Read more...As well as deer, a range of other mammals lives in the park, though they may not be as obvious.
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Richmond Park is home to the endangered and distinctive Stag Beetle - a gentle giant of the insect world.
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