大象传媒

Alan Titchmarsh took a close look at Thorne and Hatfield Moors near Doncaster, Old Moor RSPB reserve near Barnsley, and Ecclesall Woods in Sheffield as part of his tour of the country in Nature of Britain in 2007.

:: More information on each of the sites is below, but you can also find out听more about all of the sites by clicking on the links on the right of the page.

Wilderness: Thorne and Hatfield Moors, Doncaster

These vast expanses of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire might look like a moonscape, but Thorne and Hatfield Moors near Thorne in Doncaster are actually some of the best spots for wildlife in the whole of the North of England.

It's a rare and specialised habitat, home to more than 5000 species of plants and animals.

Black necked Grebe by John Smith

For many years, both sites were a scene of destruction as millions of tons of peat were scraped from the landscape. The water was drained to enable peat extraction, but now the water is being allowed to stay and the wildlife has come flooding back.

As well as being home to many rare insects, it's also one of the best spots to see our only poisonous snake, the adder.

It's also a great place to see and hear nightjars - an exotic-looking bird that hunts across the moors at night searching out moths and other small insects.

Freshwater: Old Moor, Barnsley

The RSPB's reserve near Barnsley was once known as Hell's Kitchen - it was the epicentre of the regions' coal industry, and the coal in the pityard allegedly used to glow at night!

Now that mining no longer takes place here, water has moved in to the sunken lands the industry left behind.

Volunteers are working to restore the habitat - planting reedbeds which will be home to insect species which in turn will provide food for birds like reed buntings.

One of the big success stories of Old Moor is the colony of tree sparrows, a once common bird that is in decline elsewhere in the UK.

Get involved

Wildlife and conservation volunteers are always needed across South Yorkshire. Click on the link to find out how you can get involved with wildlife where you live.

You can also read more Nature features on this website. Plum picking in Sheffield city centre, wildlife on Rotherham canal, tree planting at Beighton tip, and the Wildlife Where I Live photo competition. Just click on the links on the right of the page.