IF YOU go down to the woods at the Welsh Wildlife Park in Cilgerran next week you could be in for a big surprise…

Acclaimed naturalist and BBC TV presenter Iolo Williams will be broadcasting live from the Teifi Marshes on Tuesday evening (October 25).

Iolo and fellow presenter Gillian Burke are fronting the first in a series of programmes with an over-arching theme of ‘The Changing Face of Autumn’ as part of the popular Autumnwatch.

The pair will be tramping the marshes while posing the question: With the extremes of wildfires and soaring temperatures in the summer, how will our native wildlife have coped and how does that change our expectations of the future?

And they will also explore the Autumnal season on the west coast of the UK – from dolphins in Cardigan Bay to the unmistakeable seasonal sound of a deer rut.

“The stunning Teifi Marshes is one of the best wetland sites in Wales and has a wealth of wildlife that call this corner of Wales home,” a BBC spokesperson told the Tivy-Side.

“In Autumn, thousands of starlings perform glorious murmurations over the marshes before descending to roost.

"The reserve is situated on the floor of the wide pre-glacial channel left by the former course of the Teifi and now occupied by the river Piliau, which meanders through the marshes in a narrow but deceptively deep cut.

"A range of habitats is supported, from open pasture and well wooded hedgerows, through Alder and Willow carr, freshwater marsh with open pools and reedbeds to tidal mudbanks.

"The area attracts large numbers of wildfowl, notably teal, wigeon and mallard.

“Otters can be found in the marshes, water shrews are numerous and sika and red deer are now present.

“Fish species include lamprey, stickleback, mullets, eel, sewin and salmon. Frogs and toads are numerous and both grass snakes and adders are present on the reserve.

“We’re also hoping for glimpses of badgers, foxes, red kites, kingfishers and little egrets.”

Autumnwatch returns to BBC Two on Tuesday (October 25) at 8pm.