There is a nation of snow-capped mountains that contains more golden eagles and red deer than any other in Europe. It’s also a haven for nearly half the entire continent’s population of seabirds. Another part of this archipelago boasts most of the world’s chalk streams, which flow through flowery downland home to more large blue butterflies than anywhere else on the planet. These islands are home to a bewildering array of habitats, from temperate rainforests to pine woods usually found in the high Arctic, vast lowland estuaries and purple-hued heather uplands.
Keen to visit this remarkable place? The good news is we don’t have to travel far. This is the British Isles, and they are wilder than many of us imagine.
We are probably familiar with the uncomfortable facts about home: it is one of the most nature-depleted countries in Europe, densely populated, intensively farmed, polluted and still losing both abundance and rare species – at least 500 extinctions, and
