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Bedfordshire has a wide variety of wild plants and animals. Some are common, some are rare. Some have been here for centuries and some have only just arrived. Some are becoming more numerous and some are disappearing fast. But they are all important to our local wildlife and they have all made Bedfordshire their home.

A species can’t live just anywhere, however. Different plants and animals have different needs for survival. For example, we humans can’t live at the bottom of the ocean because we need air to breathe. Species need different food sources, temperatures, water availability, acidity, shelter and the like. Those with similar needs tend to be found together in habitats.

A habitat is a place or environment where a species normally lives or is most likely to be found. For a small county, Bedfordshire has quite a range of habitats. These include woodlands, rivers, heathlands, grasslands and wetlands. They also include farmland and even towns and villages!

The variety of species and habitats is what makes nature special in Bedfordshire and Luton. Click on the links below to find out more about our local wildlife.

FarmLife: spaces and species living on Bedfordshire's farms

LandLife: things that live on the land - just like us!

WaterLife: our wetlands and waterways, and the things that swim, crawl and dive in them

UrbanLife: what's wild in our cities, towns and villages

Or go directly to information on one of our priority habitats or species:

Priority habitats	Priority species
Arable field margins	Adder
Brownfields (IN PROGRESS)	Arable plants
Floodplain grazing marsh	Depressed river mussel
Hedgerows	European otter
Lowland dry acid grassland	Great-crested newt
Lowland calcareous grassland	Hazel dormouse
Lowland heathland	Water vole
Lowland meadow
Ponds
Reedbed
Traditional orchards
Wet woodland
Wood-pasture and parkland
Woodland