Captain’s Wood is a most extraordinary wood quite different to any other wood owned by Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Unlike the dense thicket of the coppices of Bradfield or Combs Woods, Captain’s Wood has an open airy feel with space between the trees where fallow deer roam through one of the greatest expanses of bluebells in the county.

No one is sure where the name originated. Being close to the coast one might speculate that some wealthy seafaring man once owned it. What we do know though is that over the last 1000 years the wood has passed through the hands of various Bishops, noblemen and moneyed families including in 1550 the Bishop of Norwich, in 1620 Sir Michael Stanhope (Groom to the chamber of Elizabeth 1) and in the late 19th century Sir Richard Wallace. Until the 20th Century the wood was a small part of a much larger estate but the estate was broken up and what remains now is little more than a fragment.

Early maps show a landscape around Sudbourne radically different to that found today. A mosaic of wood pasture (open woodland typically grazed by deer or livestock) and heathland extended for several thousand acres and the boundary of Captains Wood can clearly be seen much as it is today. However, much of Sudbourne Great Wood to the north has been cleared for agriculture in the last 70 years, as have the extensive heaths to the east and south. Today Captains Wood sits in a modern farming landscape of turf and potato production.

However, step into Captains Wood and you step back one hundred years or more into a woodland habitat of ancient trees and wild flowers where deer roam freely, barn owls hunt the clearings and 7 species of bat feed amongst the trees. Despite this apparent wildness the structure of Captains Wood is very much the work of generations of men. Wood pasture was a favoured sporting environment in the Middle Ages ideally suited to hunting deer on horseback. Right through to the early 20th century the wood was used for hunting and shooting. The 1883 map shows a building in the middle of the wood referred to as the Luncheon Rooms which was no doubt a part of the social fabric of the time, providing a place of rest and recuperation during a days shooting or riding. No trace of this building remains today.

These early maps also show a 4 acre formal woodland garden towards the Sudbourne village end of the wood. Unusually, the gardens do not appear to be directly associated with a large house and their origin remains unknown. All that can be found today are a few exotic trees, crumbling walls and lines of thistle and nettle that follow the course of former walls and ditches.

Of the 140 acres purchased by the Trust, 90 acres is woodland and the remainder is grassland. The grassland areas that up until the 1990’s were cultivated to grow cereals have since developed into acid grassland maintained largely by deer and rabbit grazing. The soils are light and free-draining allowing nutrients to quickly wash out creating conditions that are more akin to heathland soils. In time it is expected that the vegetation will become quite ‘heathy’ with gorse already becoming established.

The woodland habitat does vary across the reserve ranging from mostly open woodland with oak and birch to a large stand of almost pure hazel, clumps of mature Scots pine and lines of planted sweet chestnut. In some areas, rhododendron that was planted for game cover many years ago has grown up into dense clumps stifling the growth of any other plants. The most spectacular and ecologically valuable woodland component is the veteran oak trees found throughout much of the woodland. These trees are many hundreds of years old and might be considered complete ecosystems in themselves. Associated with these ancient trees are species of fungi and invertebrates that are entirely dependent on the slowly rotting heartwood within the trees. One such species is oak polypore that is only known from six other sites in Britain.

In May Captain’s Wood exhibits one of the most astonishing displays of bluebells to be found anywhere in Suffolk. Acre upon acre of blue flowers carpet the woodland floor for a few short weeks before they disappear under a vigorous flush of bracken growth. Prior to the bluebells, primroses flower here and there. The woodland is home to a large herd of fallow deer – it is not unusual to see 50 plus. The deer are important in maintaining the open character of the woodland but they also heavily browse the wildflowers and stop any tree seedlings growing.

The Trust is intending to manage Captain’s Wood with the minimum of intervention relying where possible on the deer and rabbits to maintain the clearings and the open character of the woodland. However, there are some issues that must be addressed. The greatest challenge will be removing the bulk of the rhododendron that has become established. Rhododendron is highly invasive and completely smothers all other plants. Being a non-native it is of no value to wildlife and grows at the expense of species such as bluebells and holly. Sycamore has also started to invade the eastern margin and will be removed to favour native species. In addition, ragwort that is infesting the largest of the former arable fields will be controlled by mowing and weed-wiping.

As a part of the project the Trust will be planting a new generation of oak trees. Prior to the Trust buying the wood, Gary Battell Suffolk County Council’s woodland officer had grown several hundred acorns collected from the veteran oaks in Captain’s Wood. These will be planted not only in areas cleared of rhododendron but also at a low density in the smaller grassland areas with the intention of creating new wood pasture.

Volunteers have already been busy in the wood undertaking a variety of tasks. Local volunteers from the village have been removing the protective tubes from trees planted in the 1990’s and then thinning them to select the largest to grow on. The Ipswich mid-week volunteer team have also assisted with this work, started the sycamore removal and have had a ‘bash’ at some of the more scattered rhododendron. Both groups have also planted some of the new oak trees.

The fallow deer are the most obvious large mammals but foxes are occasionally seen and badgers are known to live in the wood. Barn owls, which make use of holes in the veteran trees for nesting, hunt the rough grassland areas at dawn and dusk. Other raptors that can be seen regularly include kestrel, sparrowhawk, buzzard together with marsh harriers that come up from the nearby Alde estuary to hunt for small mammals in the grassland.

There is still much to learn about the wildlife of Captain’s Wood. The Trust has commissioned surveys of fungi and invertebrates and the location of every veteran tree will be mapped. Volunteers will help with recording other species such as birds and wild flowers. The Suffolk Moth Group are planning a series of visits using light traps to record moths and the Suffolk Bat Group are keen to follow up their initial surveys.

Visiting Captain’s Wood
Captain’s Wood can be found by turning down School Road off the Orford to Snape road in Sudbourne village. Approximately 200m beyond the last house there is a car parking area on the right. Park here and then walk back 300m towards the village and look for a drive on the north side of the road sign posted ‘entrance to Captain’s Wood’.

Captain’s Wood is open dawn ‘til dusk throughout the year. There is a way-marked nature trail that leads visitors around much of the wood. Walk quietly to be sure of seeing the deer. Ground conditions are generally good but it can be muddy during the winter months.

Bats
Recent surveys by the Suffolk Bat Group have shown that Captain’s Wood is used by at least 7 species of bat making it one of the most important wood pasture habitats for bats in the county. The most notable is the Barbastelle, a nationally rare species strongly associated with ancient woodland containing veteran trees. Incredibly this was the second most commonly recorded species during the survey confirming the importance of Captain’s Wood for this species.

Six of the seven species recorded may well be using the wood for roosting, hibernation or breeding as well as feeding including Natterers, Noctule, two species of Pipistrelle and Common Long Eared bat. Only Serotine which tends only to roost in buildings would appear to be using the site solely for feeding.

Further work will hope to identify the location of any breeding sites for Barbastelle, confirm what are the key feeding areas and quite future management work.