The streams that flow through a number of the woodlands add a further habitat for invertebrates, being a home for fresh water shrimps, water beetles, caddis fly, stonefly and mayfly.

The River Dearne, which flows past Cliffe Wood, was at one time one of region's most polluted rivers, but now supports brown trout.

Reptiles, Fish & Amphibians
A number of amphibians, fish and reptiles have been recorded from one or two of the sites. For example, the Treeton Marsh area of Hail Mary Hill Wood supports Grass Snake, Three-spined and Ten-spined Sticklebacks, Smooth Newt and Common Frog. The pools and small lakes close to the southern edge of Cliffe Wood contain Carp, Perch, Bream and Tench. The River Dearne, which forms part of the southern boundary of this woodland and which was at one time one of the most polluted rivers in the region, now supports Brown Trout.

The berries of the Rowan or Mountain Ash, though poisonous to humans, are an important food source for birds.

Birds
The range of birds recorded in the Heritage Woodlands is especially wide for an urban area and includes a number of species that are relatively uncommon or declining in numbers. As for invertebrates, the range of birds found on a site reflects the mix of habitats found. The greatest variety of bird species tends to be in woodlands with wet areas, in those with abundant mature trees for hole-nesting birds, and in those with a well-developed shrub layer.

Birds which favour areas of more mature woodland include Blackcap, Sparrowhawk, Jay, Treecreeper and Tawny Owl. Standing deadwood provides nesting sites for Green Woodpecker, Greater-spotted Woodpecker, Blue Tit, Great Tit and Nuthatch.

In contrast, species such as Wren, Chiffchaff, Turtle Dove, Song Thrush, Linnet, Grey Partridge. Chaffinch, Lesser Whitethroat, Yellowhammer and Kestrel prefer woodland edges and clearings, as well as adjacent hedgerows, open ground and areas of scrub. At some of the more urban sites, many of these birds supplement their food supply from adjoining residential areas. These more open areas are also important for feeding Jays and Magpies and as a venue for Woodcocks to perform their distinctive display flight, known as roding.

A number of the Heritage Woodlands contain marsh and streamside areas and associated with these are Woodcock, Willow Tit, Reed Warbler and Willow Warbler.

Other species known to breed in the woodlands include Robin, Blackbird and Mistle Thrush. The woods also support a wide range of breeding Tit Species including Long- tailed Tit and Coal Tit. Finches breeding in the woodlands include Greenfinch, and at least one pair of Hawfinches is known to have nested in Woolley Wood in the past. Another species thought to breed here is the elusive Lesser-spotted Woodpecker.

Summer visitors to the woodlands include Cuckoo, Spotted Flycatcher and a variety of warblers including Chiffchaff, Garden Warbler and Whitethroat.

In winter, the Heritage Woodlands provide a feeding ground for a wide variety of birds. Siskins, Redpolls, Bullfinches, Greenfinches, Waxwings, Goldcrests, Long-tailed Tits, Chaffinches, Bramblings, Song Thrushes and Blackbirds occur in greater numbers than in the Summer, being joined by the winter visitors, Fieldfare and Redwing. Woolley Wood is an important autumn/winter feeding ground for Hawfinch.

Blackberries are an important autumn food source for a wide variety of mammals, birds and invertebrates.

Mammals
A wide variety of mammals have been recorded from the Heritage Woodlands. Not surprisingly, the best woodlands for mammals tend to be those some distance from built-up areas.

Smaller mammals found in the woodlands include Pigmy and Common Shrews, Field and Bank Voles and Wood Mouse, with Harvest Mouse, Water Vole and Water Shrew having been recorded from Treeton Marsh in Hail Mary Hill Wood. Fox is present at many of the sites and badgers have long lived in some. The Grey Squirrel is the only mammal that you can be certain to spot on any visit to any of the woods! Some of the woodlands support Hedgehog, Mole, Stoat, Weasel, Rabbit and Brown Hare. A number of the woodlands are feeding areas for Noctule, Leislers and, most frequently, Pipistrelle bats.

Red Deer have been known to use Wheata Wood and Prior Royd, these being the remnants of a herd originally established in Wharncliffe Chase and released in the 1940s. Badger was present in a number of the woodlands until the 1960's but is now either rare or extinct in most of the woods, probably as a result of a combination of persecution and disturbance.