Sutton Park NNR

Sutton Park NNR The official page of Sutton Park. A working landscape steeped in history, covered by fantastic habitats and surrounded by city.
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Sutton Ranger Hub
Covering Sutton Coldfield, Erdington and Perry Barr Constituencies
Based at The Visitor Centre, Sutton Park National Nature Reserve
Park Road
Sutton Coldfield
Birmingham
B74 2YT A real jewel in Birmingham's crown. Delivering a sense of wilderness within an urban environment, visitors to Sutton Park can enjoy the captivating scenery, using an accessible network of paths. There are

opportunities to enjoy walking, jogging,angling, nature watching, orienteering, picnic and play areas, restaurants and use bridle paths and cycling routes in the Park. Car parks are located at all the main entrances and the Park is linked to a variety of public transport routes. Sutton Park is an historic landscape that covers an area of over 2,000 acres and attracts over two million visitors every year. The Visitor Centre has displays and exhibitions based on nature conservation , information on nature trails, guided walks, and events. These activities are organised by the Sutton Park Rangers who are part of the Birmingham Parks Ranger Service. In addition, the Rangers offer a range of curriculum based activities for schools.

A few days of rain and the park is already turning a noticeable shade of green. Most species of grass are wonderfully ad...
29/08/2026

A few days of rain and the park is already turning a noticeable shade of green. Most species of grass are wonderfully adapted to survive drought conditions as both plant and seed and will rapidly spring into life at the first opportunity. Grasses also, unlike many other plants, grow not from their tips but rather from intercalary meristems located near the base of their stems which is why they can keep growing with repeated grazing and why a lawn mown to within an inch of its life will always be a lawn (better ecological treatments of lawns are available)!

***** The Nonacentennial Survey *****As many of you will be aware 2026 has seen the park celebrate is nonacentennial ann...
26/08/2026

***** The Nonacentennial Survey *****

As many of you will be aware 2026 has seen the park celebrate is nonacentennial anniversary. To commemorate 900 years since the first documented record of the parks existence the Friends of Sutton Park Association have been conducting a huge programme of species recording across all of the parks habitats in an effort to attempt to record 900 different species within one year; a huge task! The survey is on target and has also identified a large number of new site species including only a few nights ago the large, rare, and frankly stunningly coloured Clifden Nonpareil - Catocala fraxini. This beautiful moth, also known as the Blue underwing, can be found in many habitats but the caterpillars are only normally found feeding on aspen; a species of tree found in many of the wet areas of the park.

Photocredit Abbie Phelps

One of our rangers, before the rain arrived, captured a battle between two bee wolves over a burrow. If you look closely...
26/08/2026

One of our rangers, before the rain arrived, captured a battle between two bee wolves over a burrow. If you look closely below and just behind the invading bee you can see the body of a doomed honey bee dropped briefly during the short but intense interaction. Bee wolves evolved to specifically target wild honey bee colonies as well as other large solitary mining bees but today rely heavily upon the now domesticated honey bee.

We are delighted to have discovered that our breeding Kingfishers are feeding a second brood after successfully fledging...
25/08/2026

We are delighted to have discovered that our breeding Kingfishers are feeding a second brood after successfully fledging a first earlier in the summer! This image was captured yesterday by one of our rangers and shows one of our pair charging out over water on its ceaseless search for little fishies!

24/08/2026

***** Site Information Blue Green Algae ***** please share as widely as you can!

If you are visiting the park over the next week or so please keep yourself, dogs, children, and any other pets away from any of our ponds, pools, and streams. This request is due to the presence of blue green algae. Blue green algae often "blooms" in times of low rainfall and high temperatures; it is a naturally occurring phenomenon. The streams in the park have turned noticeably green as the blue green algae (a type of Cyanobacteria) are being washed out of the pools by last week’s rain fall and concentrated downstream in the watercourses. Hopefully the rain that is forecast to arrive by the end of the week will help flush out the blooms in their entirety. As always please keep yourself and others safe, follow all signage, and ensure you wash your hands if you come into contact with water in the park. We will of course provide updates going forward.

England's green and fragrant land! Taken yesterday these images show our new Ranger Warden exploring one of the many are...
16/08/2026

England's green and fragrant land!

Taken yesterday these images show our new Ranger Warden exploring one of the many areas across the park that remain damp, wet, and full of growth even in times of drought. These areas remain wet thanks to the many natural springs and issues found within the park and provide fantastic grazing for both our cattle and pony herds throughout the year; as well as providing generous shade and respite from the summer heat and bustle. These wet areas support a huge diversity of plant species and in turn a vast diversity of insect life. Pictured is one of several Green-veined White butterflies that were at the time feeding upon a violet haze of Field Scabious above a sea of Water Mint growing within a weave and tangle of grasses, sedges, and rushes.

A huge thank you to the members of public who alerted our rangers to the smell of smoke around keepers pool last night a...
12/08/2026

A huge thank you to the members of public who alerted our rangers to the smell of smoke around keepers pool last night and a massive thank you to West Midlands Fire Service who despite contending with several incidents were able to deploy a crew from Handsworth Fire Station to respond. Over the next few days our rangers will be out and about as much as is possible in order to respond rapidly to any similar incidents. If you encounter a fire please ensure you own personal safety and then call 999 immediately!

A massive thank you to the West Midlands Fire Service crew from Oldbury Firestation who very quickly dealt with a series...
05/08/2026

A massive thank you to the West Midlands Fire Service crew from Oldbury Firestation who very quickly dealt with a series of small fires within an area of woodland close to Boldmere Gate. These small fires could have very quickly become quite serious with the potential to threaten a number of neighbouring properties. A huge debt of thanks is owed not only to this specific crew but also to all of the crews across the country who have been working around the clock over the past few weeks to limit whenever possible fire damage across our parks and green spaces.

***** New Site Record *****Our new Ranger Shannon (with microscope) working through some species ID alongside our new Ra...
05/08/2026

***** New Site Record *****

Our new Ranger Shannon (with microscope) working through some species ID alongside our new Ranger Warden Al following a pop-up bug hunt for the public at the jamboree stone. Despite the rather parched conditions a large number of species were caught and identified including a lovely new site record in Schillings Rhopalid - Chorosoma schillingii).

If you’re in the park over the next few weeks and you happen to spot a fast flying sulphur yellow butterfly chances are ...
29/07/2026

If you’re in the park over the next few weeks and you happen to spot a fast flying sulphur yellow butterfly chances are you will have seen the lovely Clouded Yellow - Colias croceus. Not a native species but rather a high summer migrant from the Mediterranean; they can turn up in surprisingly large numbers. In good weather they can complete a full cycle of egg to adult utilising plants in the pea family such as clovers, trefoils, and lucerne before the newly emerged adults migrate back southwards.

One of our rangers noticed a Clouded Yellow flying around the Wyndley Gate area of the park this morning. The image shows a specimen found dead by another ranger many years ago and kept for show and tell!

Address

Visitor Centre, Park Road
Sutton Coldfield
B742YT

Telephone

+441213556370

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