Wildlife

The Chilterns AONB was designated to protect its special qualities including the steep chalk escarpment with areas of flower-rich downland, woodlands, commons, tranquil valleys, networks of ancient routes, villages with brick and flint buildings, and a rich history of hill forts and chalk figures such as the Whiteleaf Cross.

The past actions of ice and melt-waters, combined with the geology, soils and climate, and generations of human influence in the Central Chilterns give rise to distinctive, beautiful and varied habitats rich in wildlife and historical value.

The Chilterns has nationally-important concentrations of chalk grassland, particularly along the slopes of the steep scarps and dry valleys. Luxuriant stands of orchids and other local species such as the Chiltern gentian are vital components of the area’s distinctiveness. Many of the insects found here rely on chalk-grassland plants – for example the Adonis blue, Chalkhill blue and Duke of Burgundy butterflies.

Arable field margins, if managed appropriately, can create beneficial conditions for key farmland species. Cornfield annuals, poppies and knapweed, which have suffered national declines in distribution and abundance can find a home there. Arable field margins are also important nesting and feeding sites for game birds and song birds including the skylark and corn bunting.

Hedgerows have been part of our landscape for centuries and provide a direct cultural link to our past; they still bear the marks of traditional hedgerow management, and help to uncover human activity in the area. Black Hedge at Princes Risborough, is known to have been in existence since AD 903 and is thought to be England’s oldest hedge.