Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
Location | Bedfordshire |
---|---|
Grid reference | TL022503 |
Interest | Geological |
Area | 0.4 hectares |
Notification | 1988 |
Location map | Magic Map |
Biddenham Pit is a gravel pit and Site of Special Scientific Interest [1] (SSSI), 0.41 hectares in size located in Biddenham, Bedfordshire. [2] The pit was notified to Bedford Borough Council and Bedfordshire County Council under the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981) in 1988, [2] and is also a Geological Conservation Review site. [3] The site is owned by Persimmon Homes and Kier Homes, with management advice given by Natural England. [4]
The pit provides an intact and visually inspectable terrace gravel, both silty and clayey, which has been laid down by the River Great Ouse. [2] Several features of scientific interest have been identified in the deposits - interglacial mollusca and mammalian remains have been found, possible microfossil material as well as evidence of a prolific Paleolithic industry in the lowest layers of the gravel. [2] Its last official inspection by a Natural England staff member found the whole site [5] and more specifically the gravel feature inside it to be in a 'Favourable' condition. [6]
There is access by a footpath from Malcote Close. [4]
The Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire (WTBCN) is a registered charity which manages 126 nature reserves covering 3,945 hectares. It has over 35,000 members, and 95% of people in Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire live within five miles of a reserve. In the year to 31 March 2016 it employed 105 people and had an income of £5.1 million. It aims to conserve wildlife, inspire people to take action for wildlife, offer advice and share knowledge. The WTBCN is one of 36 wildlife trusts covering England, and 46 covering the whole of the United Kingdom.
Biddenham is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England, located around 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Bedford town centre near the A428 road. It forms part of the wider Bedford urban area.
Felmersham Gravel Pits is a 21.6-hectare (53-acre) Site of Special Scientific Interest between the villages of Felmersham and Sharnbrook in Bedfordshire. It was notified under Section 28 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 in 1986 and the local planning authority is Bedford Borough Council. The site is managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.
Cherry Hinton Pit is a 12.8-hectare (32-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) on the south-eastern outskirts of Cambridge. The site consists of East Pit and most of the smaller West Pit. East Pit is part of the Limekiln Close and East Pit Local Nature Reserve, which is managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire under the name Cherry Hinton Chalk Pits. West Pit is a separate Local Nature Reserve (LNR).
Dogsthorpe Star Pit is a 36.4-hectare (90-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)) on the eastern outskirts of Peterborough in Cambridgeshire. It is also designated a Local Nature Reserve, and it is managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.
Roswell Pits is an 8 hectare nature reserve on the eastern outskirts of Ely in Cambridgeshire. It is managed by the Environment Agency. It is part of the Ely Pits and Meadows Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)) and Geological Conservation Review site. The SSSI designation for both biological and geological interest. The site was formerly managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.
Double Arches Pit was a sand quarry near the village and civil parish of Heath and Reach, Bedfordshire, England. It is now a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Geological Conservation Review site.
Wansunt Pit is a 1.9-hectare (4.7-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Dartford Heath between Crayford in the London Borough of Bexley and Dartford in Kent. It is also a Geological Conservation Review site. It is important geologically because it exposes the Dartford Heath Gravel, and the relationship of this exposure to the Swanscombe sequence and the Thames Terraces is a controversial issue in Thames Pleistocene studies. The site is part of Braeburn Park, a nature reserve managed by the London Wildlife Trust.
Hanger Wood is an ancient woodland and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in the parish of Stagsden, Bedfordshire in the United Kingdom. Situated approximately one kilometre east of the village of Stagsden, the 24.12 hectares woodland was declared a SSSI in 1988, being described by Natural England as "one of the best remaining examples of wet ash-maple woodland in Bedfordshire". The name "Hanger" comes from Old English/Anglo-Saxon term for "wood on a hill" or "wooded hill", applied to Hanger Wood due to its situation on a northwest-facing slope of a narrow ridge. Commenting on the wood's character, A. Simco said in 1984 that "It has been strongly influenced by the geology and topography of the area, particularly by the south-west/north-east boulder clay ridge along which the parish boundary runs."
Little Heath Pit is a 0.3-hectare (0.74-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Little Heath near Potten End in Hertfordshire. It is part of the Ashridge Estate, owned by the National Trust, and the local planning authority is Dacorum Borough Council. It is listed in the Geological Conservation Review.
Nine Acres Pit is a 20.7-hectare (51-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Importance north-east of Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire. It was notified in 1986 under Section 28 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and the local planning authority is Central Bedfordshire Council. It is a Geological Conservation Review site.