A STUNNING display of traditional forestry work is on show this half-term in an ancient woodland in the Yorkshire Dales.

Ghalm, a North Swedish Horse bred specifically for agricultural tasks, is sympathetically moving timber his handler has felled to ensure minimum disturbance on the woodland floor.

Horse logging involves no use of heavy machinery and is being carried out in Strid Wood in the Bolton Abbey estate, North Yorkshire.

The woods contain sessile oak trees and flora and fauna, making it a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

A section of "halo thinning" is being carried out around some of the veteran oak trees to remove some of the semi-mature beech trees encroaching on the canopy of the old oaks.

The work will allow light to dapple the woodland floor and encourage plants to bloom that have laid dormant for years. It is hoped even more spectacular displays of bluebells will be on show in years to come.

Ghalm will be working subject to the weather on February 27 and March 1.

Strid Wood was opened to the public in 1810 and is now one of the most visited woodlands in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.