Iolo Williams kicks off the autumn leg of his 2007 Welsh Safari by exploring the Brecon Beacons, which is celebrating its 50th year as a National Park. The park is home to Wales' only established red deer population, but they're not easy to see.

With expert help and plenty of patience, the presenter has a privileged sighting of some stags practicing for the autumnal rut in which they compete for the attention and affections of the females.

Other highlights include Iolo's close-up encounter with rare greater horseshoe bat babies, and honey buzzard chicks, an unusual sight in the UK.

• Brecon Beacons

Iolo's next stop is Coed y Brenin, near Dolgellau, which is literally crawling with wildlife.

Millions of hairy wood ants get to work building their nests. These large mounds, which are numerous in the forest, are carefully constructed with chambers and tunnels to keep the ants and their larvae at the perfect temperature.

Rare mosses and lichens also thrive in the forest. These unusual plants love the Welsh rain!

Iolo also encounters raft spiders and has a 'shocking' time electrofishing in the River Ceiriog.

• Preview clip of Coed y Brenin

Iolo's Journey concludes in New Quay, on the Cardigan Bay coastline. The bay is home to one of only 2 resident populations of bottlenose dolphins in UK waters.

Iolo joins the Cardigan Bay Marine Wildlife Centre's volunteers on survey trip as they try and spot some of the 244 individuals they've identified

Having found his sea legs, Iolo heads for deeper waters with Sea Trust volunteers who are on the look out for some other marine creatures.

Back on dry land, Iolo heads to the Aberdovey dunes to help replenish numbers of the scarce sand lizard. He also visits Kenfig Dunes, where half the UK's population of the rare fen orchid can be found.

First stop was Rhydymwyn Nature Reserve. The site used in World War Two as a mustard gas factory now teams with wildlife. Iolo looked for bank voles and wood mice and met a tawny owl. We also visited Cwm Idwal to find the purple saxifrage plant, watched short-eared owls at Kinmel Bay and visited Colwyn Bay to see rescued seals. Iolo saw the Hall family's badgers and webcam.

• Rhydymwyn Nature reserve

Iolo returned to Bardsey Island and looked at razorbills and gulls. Iolo joined the Bardsey Bird Observatory warden on a night time expedition to see manx shearwaters. Lynfa Sarah Jenkin (camerawoman), showed us close-up shots of seals.

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• Bardsey Island beachcombing

Native birds flock to the National Wetlands Centre Wales at Penclacwydd, a 450 acre reserve on the Burry Inlet. Iolo picked up a few tips from an expert photographer, studied water voles and searched for wild boar in Wales before heading to the Otter Care Unit in Llangorse.

• Llangorse Otter Sanctuary

Iolo visited Cors Caron where he saw wading birds and red kites soaring above the 'Red Bog'. He then visited the Porthmadog Osprey pair and Cambrian Lapwing Trust reserve to watch 1500 wintering lapwings and searched for pine martens in Snowdonia.

• Cors Caron

Iolo looked for wildlife in viewers gardens and found slow worms, a grass snake and swallows nesting in a bedroom. Later he explored Gower, rock-pooling and lizard spotting and watched a Dartford warbler. Later, Iolo met a bee keeper helping honey bees to thrive.

• Gower and Oxwich Bay