I shot this on location in the UK's New Forest National Park, a haven of wild heaths and ancient woodlands, sheltering an oasis of wildlife. I visit the woods quite often - once a week, if I'm able - but year by year I can see the biodiversity wane. This short film aims to highlight the issue of habitat and biodiversity loss in the UK due to industrialisation, climate issues, and pollution. It also serves as a prelude to an upcoming series filmed in the New Forest, covering British Wildlife from life in the waterways to the log piles and the treetops. Written, filmed and narrated by Leo Richards. Filmed on location in the New Forest National Park, UK. To celebrate National Poetry Day (6th October) and this year's theme of 'The Environment' I have collaborated with @Ecoflix to run a #WriteForTheWild poetry competition! I hope this film inspires you to grab a pen and take part. Read how below. About Ecoflix: Ecoflix is the world's first not-for-profit media group dedicated to wildlife and conservation storytelling. This is not a sponsorship, but a collaboration. I'm very excited to be working with them on a few upcoming projects :D Check out Ecoflix here: https://ecoflix.com/ How to Get Involved: All you have to do is write a short poem about the environment and send us a photo of the poem which we will share to our social media channels! Feel free to get creative and share your poems as part of a wildlife drawing too! Check out my poem in this video for inspiration. I chose to touch upon the issue of biodiversity loss as our country's wild havens continue to be ravaged by agriculture, industry, and a disregard for the fragility and importance of nature that seems to plague the population. Please share your submissions to Instagram and tag @ecoflixofficial and @naturalwfacts to have them shared. The deadline for submissions will be the 16th October, with the winner announced shortly after. The winner will receive a 1 year subscription to Ecoflix for themselves or their family, plus for another friend or family too! :D #nationalpoetryday #wildlife #nature #artlistcreativefest

Richmond Park is home to an abundance of wildlife, from majestic Red Deer to Stag Beetles. Explore the biodiversity of this incredible ecosystem, and join us as we look for wildlife in Richmond Park. As the UK’s largest land mammal, red deer are truly majestic creatures. The males, known as stags, develop a large set of antlers that grow with age and are shed and regrown each year, while the females or hinds lack antlers and tend to be smaller. Red deer certainly leave their mark on the landscape. Nearly all of the trees in the park have a distinctive ‘browse line’ at 1.5 metres above the ground, caused by deer eating all the leaves and twigs that grow below that height. Their constant grazing on grasses, shoots and shrubs prevents saplings from growing, maintaining the largest area of Lowland Acid Grassland in London, hosting much of the park’s diversity. Thanks Albi for the London Timelapse footage :) 00:00 Intro 00:15 Refuge in the City 01:23 Red Deer in the Park 03:20 Life in the Deadwood 04:36 The Detrital Food Web 06:16 Colonisers 07:59 Hunters and the Hunted 09:16 Life on the Riverbed 10:22 Outro

Common Toads are a toad species found throughout the UK. Watch the complete Common Toad guide to learn all about these beautiful toads and where to find them. Whilst on location at Totternhoe Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve, I encounter one of Britains common amphibians. The Common Toad. In this video, I give you facts, footage and more about this intriguing animal. All footage taken by Leo R. More videos from the Nature Reserve: Slow Worms: https://youtu.be/ALMo0oJifSs Q&A Special: https://youtu.be/JIk-x7_7oF0 Natural World Facts is a channel dedicated to bringing you fascinating facts about our natural world, and the wonderful animals that we share it with, presented by Leo Richards.

The Common Toad, bouncing along to the music of the Muffin Man. Enjoy :) Full factual video: https://youtu.be/HXjBQH2j9-4

Slow Worms are legless lizards native to the UK. Watch the complete guide to Slow Worms to learn all about these beautiful reptiles and where to find them. Whilst on location at Totternhoe Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve, I encounter one of Britains strangest reptiles. The Slow Worm. In this video, I give you facts, footage and more about this intriguing animal. All footage taken by Leo R. More Slow Worm Footage: https://youtu.be/-diRuIQBOm4 More videos from the Nature Reserve: Common Toads: https://youtu.be/HXjBQH2j9-4 7000 Subscriber Q&A Special: https://youtu.be/JIk-x7_7oF0 Natural World Facts is a channel dedicated to bringing you fascinating facts about our natural world, and the wonderful animals that we share it with, presented by Leo Richards.

Slow worms hunting worms at night, filmed on location at Totternhoe Nature Reserve. Enjoy some bonus footage filmed after the release of our 'Slow Worms | The Complete Guide' video. All footage was filmed by Leo R. Full Slow Worm Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALMo0oJifSs

Slow worms, frogs and toads are common throughout the UK. At Totternhoe Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve, we went herping to find some of Britain's reptiles and amphibians, while answering some of your questions in a Q&A as we explore. Slow Worms are a species of legless lizard, though they are often confused with snakes due to their appearance; what makes them lizards, however, is the presence of eyelids and ear openings, and their ability to drop their tail when threatened by predators. Common Toads are well adapted to life in both ponds and on land; they have bumpier skin than frogs, which spend most of their time in ponds. More videos from the Nature Reserve: Slow Worms: https://youtu.be/ALMo0oJifSs Common Toads: https://youtu.be/HXjBQH2j9-4 Slow Worms in the Lake District: https://youtu.be/bEP8AbrVbCY 0:00 Intro 1:35 Catching Common Toads 3:09 Woolly Bear Caterpillar 3:41 What is your favourite animal? Sent by GremlinTheCat 4:34 Red Ant Nest 5:03 Black Wood Ants 6:56 Crickets and Grasshoppers 7:24 On the Hunt for Slow Worms 8:45 Finding a Palmate Newt 9:18 Who is your favourite 'Dr Who' Doctor? Sent by Shelby on Safari 9:35 Why did you set up the channel? Sent by Shelby on Safari 11:22 Night Walk on the Nature Reserve 13:22 Outro

How To Create a Closed Terrarium for Free Terrariums are a fun outdoors project. Join me as I show you how to build a closed native terrarium in a sealed jar using moss, plants, hardscape, and insects found around the countryside, in parks or gardens. A terrariums is an enclosed ecosystem that can be self-sustaining, meaning you can have a slice of the natural world on your windowsill. They are great for relaxation, giving you a little chunk of nature to create and enjoy. Life in a Closed Terrarium: https://youtu.be/y771wlWpzps Watch another terrarium tutorial: https://youtu.be/y0u9k-MSo8U A terrarium is an enclosed ecosystem which can be entirely self-sustaining. Once set up and watered, you will never need to open it again since it will regulate its own water and nutrient cycles. Before we begin, you will need an airtight container. Some good examples include glass jars with clip tops, screw on lids or corks but for my example I’ll be using a large jar with a lid which screws tightly on top, allowing it to retain the moisture in the air. Other equipment you may need includes porous mesh (optional) which allows water through but not substrate, some rocks or gravel, some activated carbon for fish tank filters or charcoal, and a selection of small to medium sized local plants and mosses. The first step is to place about an inch of stones or gravel in the base of your container. Next, sprinkle on a coating of activated carbon sticks or charcoal to help with filtration. The next step is to cut out the shape of the base of your container from the porous mesh. It needs to cover the gravel layer entirely so it’s best to cut it slightly larger than the shape itself. Once this is in place over the gravel, you can add the soil. The purpose of this gravel layer is to separate the standing water from the soil to avoid roots rotting. The water will collect here as a water reservoir then will evaporate, condensate on the walls of your glass container and then fall back down into the substrate, effectively replicating the natural water cycle. This will ensure that the terrarium will naturally water itself. Moving onto the soil, a good soil mix should retain moisture well and be a mix of dead leaves, moss and compost. The soil layer should be deeper than your gravel layer to allow root space. Next, let’s add some plants to the terrarium. I will be making this a native terrarium so will be using plants from nearby parks and gardens. You could use tropical plants for yours instead. Place your choice of plants in the terrarium, paying close attention to your arrangement and how you would like it to look aesthetically. Think about putting larger plants in the background and smaller ones in the foreground. Moss is excellent for ground covering as it will eventually spread and make your terrarium look lush and wild. I’ve used a few different varieties of temperate moss inline and positioned them in-between the main plants. When choosing plants, pick some with a variety of leaf types and shades of green. Also, if you come across any worms or woodlice, set them aside for later as worms will help add nutrients to the soil and woodlice will decompose any dead matter which will help to break down nutrients. These nutrients will be absorbed by the plants through their roots via osmosis. You can also add pieces of bark or wood for landscaping. The final step is to water your terrarium by misting. Spray a very generous amount of water over the plants and moss to help them settle and to provide the ecosystem with water which will be continuously cycled throughout the terrarium. And there we have it, the perfect addition to your windowsill. You now have your very own tiny ecosystem in a jar. Observe how the plant life changes and spreads over time.You may notice that some die but this is normal. Other plants will grow in its place and seeds will spread. Chapters: 00:00 Intro 00:30 What is a Terrarium? 00:56 What You Need 01:31 Gathering Terrarium Supplies 03:03 Step 1: Terrarium False Bottom 03:58 Step 2: Sediment/Soil Layer 05:11 Step 3: Terrarium Plants and Hardscape 06:30 Step 4: Adding Water 07:18 How Terrariums Sustain Themselves 07:42 Step 5: Adding Insects 09:03 How do the Insects Breathe 09:37 Outro Music Used: Blue Ridge Mountains by Fleet Foxes (James LeRouge Cover) Promise by Ben Howard (Rêveur Voyageur Cover) Everything by Ben Howard (Live Version) Natural World Facts is a channel dedicated to bringing you fascinating facts about our natural world, and the wonderful animals that we share it with. Subscribe for more videos! Leave a suggestion in the comments for what animal you would like to learn about next. OUR WEBSITE: http://goo.gl/Ngj5V6 TWITTER: http://goo.gl/U4T8JX

How To Create a Closed Native Terrarium for Free Terrariums are great fun to create; join me as I create a closed native terrarium in a sealed jar with moss, hardscape, and plants found around a local UK woodland. Terrariums are enclosed ecosystems that can be self-sustaining, making a perfect addition to your windowsill as they are great for relaxation, giving you a little chunk of nature to create and enjoy. I was inspired to create this terrarium by SerpaDesign, who creates great tutorials and terrarium videos along with helpful tips on building terrariums and a variety of other topics. Watch him here: https://www.youtube.com/user/SerpaDesign Life in a Closed Terrarium: https://youtu.be/y771wlWpzps 1 Month Update: https://youtu.be/ZZJA_pOZZCY A terrarium is an enclosed ecosystem which can be entirely self-sustaining. Once set up and watered, you will never need to open it again since it will regulate its own water and nutrient cycles. Before we begin, you will need an airtight container. Some good examples include glass jars with clip tops, screw on lids or corks but for my example I’ll be using a large jar with a lid which screws tightly on top, allowing it to retain the moisture in the air. Other equipment you will need includes porous mesh which allows water through but not substrate, some rocks or gravel, some activated carbon for fish tank filters or charcoal, and a selection of small to medium sized local plants and mosses. The first step is to place about an inch of stones or gravel in the base of your container. Next, sprinkle on a coating of activated carbon sticks or charcoal to help with filtration. The next step is to cut out the shape of the base of your container from the porous mesh. It needs to cover the gravel layer entirely so it’s best to cut it slightly larger than the shape itself. Once this is in place over the gravel, you can add the soil. The purpose of this gravel layer is to separate the standing water from the soil to avoid roots rotting. The water will collect here as a water reservoir then will evaporate, condensate on the walls of your glass container and then fall back down into the substrate, effectively replicating the natural water cycle. This will ensure that the terrarium will naturally water itself. Moving onto the soil, a good soil mix should retain moisture well and be a mix of dead leaves, moss and compost. The soil layer should be deeper than your gravel layer to allow root space. Next, let’s add some plants to the terrarium. I will be making this a native terrarium so will be using plants from nearby parks and gardens. You could use tropical plants for yours instead. Place your choice of plants in the terrarium, paying close attention to your arrangement and how you would like it to look aesthetically. Think about putting larger plants in the background and smaller ones in the foreground. Moss is excellent for ground covering as it will eventually spread and make your terrarium look lush and wild. I’ve used a few different varieties of temperate moss inline and positioned them in-between the main plants. When choosing plants, pick some with a variety of leaf types and shades of green. Also, if you come across any worms or woodlice, set them aside for later as worms will help add nutrients to the soil and woodlice will decompose any dead matter which will help to break down nutrients. These nutrients will be absorbed by the plants through their roots via osmosis. You can also add pieces of bark or wood for landscaping. The final step is to water your terrarium by misting. Spray a very generous amount of water over the plants and moss to help them settle and to provide the ecosystem with water which will be continuously cycled throughout the terrarium. And there we have it, the perfect addition to your windowsill. You now have your very own tiny ecosystem in a jar. Observe how the plant life changes and spreads over time.You may notice that some die but this is normal. Other plants will grow in its place and seeds will spread. Chapters: 0:00 Intro 0:36 What is a Terrarium? 1:19 What You'll Need 2:46 Step 1: Terrarium False Bottom 3:53 Step 2: Sediment Layer 4:35 Step 3: Terrarium Plants and Hardscape 7:32 Step 4: Adding Water 8:00 Step 5: Adding Woodlice 8:21 Step 6: Sealing the Terrarium 8:38 Outro Natural World Facts is a channel dedicated to bringing you fascinating facts about our natural world, and the wonderful animals that we share it with. Subscribe for more videos! Leave a suggestion in the comments for what animal you would like to learn about next. OUR WEBSITE: http://goo.gl/Ngj5V6 TWITTER: http://goo.gl/U4T8JX