Veteran tree

[citation needed] Ancient trees often have features of particularly high nature conservation value, such as dead limbs, hollows, rot holes, water pools, seepages, woodpecker holes, splits, loose bark, limbs reaching the ground, and epiphytic plants and lichens.

[1] Few of these features are found on younger trees, and they provide habitats and foraging grounds for many species of animals and fungi, some of which are rare.

They thrive in a variety of settings, such as dense woodland, but are more commonly found as hedgerow trees, on village greens, and in ancient parks and other wood pastures.

[citation needed] Ancient trees occur more frequently in Great Britain than in many other parts of northern Europe.

Existing prominent trees were often used as survey points indicating boundaries of both private and government land tenure.

In Italy, general features required in order to identify an Albero Monumentale (literally "monumental tree") are defined by national law number 10 of January 14 2013, Norme per lo sviluppo degli spazi verdi urbani,[6] which also requires Italian municipalities (comuni) to take a census of their veteran trees.