Nature trail opens to all at Whiteknights campus

Staff, students and visitors to the University of Reading can now learn more about wildlife on campus thanks to a new self-guided nature trail.

The nature trail is marked by a series of signs around some of the notable habitats on the Whiteknights campus. Each sign has a unique QR code which directs the walker to a URL with more information about the habitat and the species that can be found there.

Nature lovers can get lost in the Wilderness, feed the ducks that call Whiteknights Lake home, look out for butterflies on the Meadows and bees on the Pollinator Lawns, visit the Rewilding Area to see the change over time and enjoy a picnic on the Wooded Meadows. 

The trail takes roughly 30 minutes to walk around and can be completed as a circular walk, starting and finishing close to central campus bars and cafes, or visited in sections.

Professor Mark Fellowes, Pro-Vice Chancellor (Academic Planning & Resource), said: “Whiteknights Campus is a haven for wildlife in urban Reading. Colleagues across the University have ensured that it has stayed this way, and given the biodiversity crisis these green oases become ever more important.

“We hope that this new trail will help staff, students and the local community engage even more with the nature that surrounds them every day.” 

The signs were funded by the Friends of the University of Reading and were designed by Gaia Zwiers-Mortier, a final year Zoology student.