Ferndown Common | |
---|---|
Type | Heath |
Location | Dorset, England |
Nearest town | Ferndown |
Coordinates | 50°47′55″N1°53′59″W / 50.7986°N 1.8996°W |
Area | 64.7 hectares (160 acres) |
Status | SSSI |
Ferndown Common is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) on the edge of Ferndown in Dorset, England. [1] It is currently owned by the Wimborne Estate and leased to the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust (ARC), who manage it to preserve the site's rare wildlife. [2] The site was notified as an SSSI in 1984. [1]
The area of the site is 64.7 hectares (160 acres), and comprises a significant amount of heath—primarily the dry heath Calluna vulgaris and Erica cinerea , but locally dominant are the damp or humid heath Erica tetralix and Molinia caerulea . [1] Rare heathland species include the sand lizard (Lacerta agilis), smooth snake (Coronella austriaca), heath grasshopper (Chorthippus vagansand) and the Dartford warbler (Sylvia undata). [1] [3] Other local heathland species at Ferndown Common include the silver-studded blue butterfly (Plebejus argus), European nightjar (Caprimulgus europaeus) and European stonechat. [1] In the south-east of the site there are several small ponds, which support at least 14 species of dragonflies, most of which are heathland species. [1] Also resident in the ponds are large populations of the widespread, although in decline, common frog (Rana temporaria) and palmate newt (Triturus helveticus). [1]
The site is very flat, although there are several small clay or gravel pits, and an extensive network of boundary banks which date back to the Inclosure Acts of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. [2] There is also a steep escarpment running down to the Stour Valley, which in the past was a well-used travel route. [2] Some cultivation of the land was attempted during the Second World War, as evidenced by areas of ridge and furrow. [2] Ferndown Common was designated as a town green in 2003. [2]
Chobham Common is a 655.7-hectare (1,620-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Chobham in Surrey. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I and a national nature reserve. It is part of the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area and the Thursley, Ash, Pirbright and Chobham Special Area of Conservation. It contains three scheduled monuments. Most of the site is managed by the Surrey Wildlife Trust as the Chobham Common nature reserve, but the SSSI also includes a small private reserve managed by the Trust, Gracious Pond.
Ferndown is a town and civil parish in Dorset in southern England, immediately to the north of Bournemouth and Poole. The parish, which until 1972 was called Hampreston, includes the communities of Hampreston, Longham, Stapehill and Trickett's Cross. At the 2011 Census, the population of the parish was 26,559, making Ferndown the largest inland town in Dorset in terms of population, being larger than Dorchester.
Holt Heath is a 4.88 square kilometres (1.88 sq mi) common situated four miles north-east of Wimborne Minster in east Dorset, southern England, close to the village of Holt. The reserve includes dry and wet heathland, bog and ancient woodland. The common has several nature conservation designations: national nature reserve, Special Protection Area, Special Area of Conservation and Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is owned by the National Trust and managed in association with Natural England. The heath is one of the few places where all six native British reptile species occur, and it also supports many other heathland animals, plants and birds. Rare heathland birds such as Eurasian Hobby, nightjar, Dartford warbler and woodlark have been recorded as breeding on the reserve.
Canford Heath is a suburb and area of heathland in Poole, Dorset, known for being the largest heathland in Dorset, and the largest lowland heath in the UK. It is also the name of the housing development built on the heathland in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The area is split into two wards, and at the 2011 census the combined population of the two wards was 14,079.
Arne RSPB reserve is a 5.634-square-kilometre (1,392-acre) nature reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) maintained by the RSPB and located in Dorset. It was notified as an SSSI in 1986 and the estuarine reedbeds within the site are designated as a national nature reserve. The reserve occupies the Arne Peninsula, which protrudes into Poole Harbour. Adjacent to the site is the village of Arne, although the nearest major settlement is the town of Wareham.
Thursley Common is a national nature reserve in Surrey, England, and has also been designated as a Ramsar wetland. It is also part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest called Thursley, Hankley and Frensham Commons.
Kings and Bakers Woods and Heaths is a 212.8-hectare (526-acre) Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) between Heath and Reach in Bedfordshire and Great Brickhill in Buckinghamshire. The site is mainly in Bedfordshire but includes Rammamere Heath in Buckinghamshire. It was notified in 1984 under Section 28 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and the local planning authorities are Central Bedfordshire Council and Aylesbury Vale Council. Part of it is a National Nature Reserve, and part of it is a nature reserve managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. it is also a Nature Conservation Review site.
Woolmer Forest is a 1,298.5-hectare (3,209-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest south of Bordon in Hampshire and West Sussex. It is also a Special Area of Conservation and part of the Wealden Heaths Phase II Special Protection Area. Two areas are Nature Conservation Review sites, Grade I.
Stanmore Common is a 49.2-hectare public park, Local Nature Reserve and Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation in Stanmore in the London Borough of Harrow in England. It is owned by Harrow Council and managed by the council with a local group. It was a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, but was de-notified in the early 1990s.
Sound Heath, also known as Sound Common, is an area of common land in Sound, near Nantwich in Cheshire, England, which includes heathland, grassland, scrub, woodland and wetland habitats. The majority of the area is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Local Nature Reserve.
Waldridge Fell is a Site of Special Scientific Interest located immediately south-west of Chester-le-Street in the northern part of County Durham, England. It is one of the largest areas of lowland heath in County Durham and contains the only lowland valley-mire in the county. The fell is home to a number of plants and insects that are scarce to rare elsewhere in the county.
Godrevy Head to St Agnes is a coastal Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in north Cornwall, England], noted for both its biological and geological characteristics. A number of rare and scarce plant species can be found on the site, along with many breeding seabirds.
Rosenannon Downs is a nature reserve in mid Cornwall, England, UK, being designated Rosenannon Bog and Downs Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), noted for its biological characteristics. The site supports a wide variety of flora and fauna and includes Bronze Age barrows. Conservation work is carried out on the site by the owners, the Cornwall Wildlife Trust.
Ventongimps Moor is a moorland nature reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), noted for its biological characteristics, in mid Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The site, important for the occurrence of the plant Dorset heath, was the first reserve to be purchased by the Cornwall Wildlife Trust.
Poor's Allotment is a 28.57-hectare (70.6-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1954. The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).
Parley Common is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) on the edge of Ferndown in Dorset, England. The majority land owner is the Canford Estate, but among the other owners are the Diocese of Salisbury, Dorset County Council, East Dorset District Council and a few private individuals. Most of the site is managed by the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust (ARC); East Dorset Countryside Management Service manage the area owned by East Dorset District Council and Dorset Countryside manage the area owned by Dorset County Council. The site was notified as an SSSI in 1983.
Hartland Moor is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) on the south side of Poole Harbour near the town of Wareham in Dorset, England. It consists of lowland heathland.
Corfe Barrows Nature Park comprises around nine natural areas, covering an area of 90 hectares, within the Borough of Poole that are being managed for the benefit of wildlife and people. It was designated as a nature park in June 2016.
Tadnoll and Winfrith Heath is a nature reserve of the Dorset Wildlife Trust, near the village of Winfrith Newburgh in Dorset, England. There is heathland and wetland in the reserve.