Gun | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 385 m (1,263 ft) |
Prominence | 168 m (551 ft) |
Parent peak | Shining Tor |
Listing | Marilyn |
Coordinates | 53°09′00″N2°02′46″W / 53.150°N 2.046°W Coordinates: 53°09′00″N2°02′46″W / 53.150°N 2.046°W |
Geography | |
Location | Staffordshire, England |
Parent range | Peak District |
OS grid | SJ970615 |
Topo map | OS Landranger 118 |
Gun is a hill at the southern end of the Peak District, overlooking the town of Leek in the Staffordshire Moorlands. The hill is mainly moorland with some small wooded areas. Neighbouring peaks to the east are The Roaches, Hen Cloud and Ramshaw Rocks. It is a nature reserve of the Staffordshire Wildlife Trust.
The hill has height 385 metres (1,263 ft), and there is a trig point at the summit. Having a prominence of 168 metres (551 ft), it is a Marilyn. [1]
Gun has the Summits on the Air reference G/SP-013. [2] The hill often features in the itinerary of the Tour of Britain cycle race.
Gun Moor, area 78 hectares (190 acres), is a nature reserve of the Staffordshire Wildlife Trust. There is moorland, woodland and blanket bog. Uncommon species of bird such as lesser redpoll and cuckoo may be seen, and bog asphodel flowers in the summer. There is a circular walk, over hilly terrain, that takes 1½ to 2½ hours. [3] [4]
Gun Moor was purchased when it came to the market in 2019. The Trust was aware that the moor was important and that it did not carry any protection; in order to secure the site, it was purchased by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, and the Trust agreed to buy the site within two years, at the original price. After donations from individuals and charitable trusts, this was achieved. Jeff Sim, Head of Nature Reserves and species recovery, said: "The habitat Gun Moor contains is what makes the Peak District Moors of international significance, so it is really important that the Trust was able to purchase and protect it." [4]
During summer 2022, the Trust took out a loan to buy Gun Moor Meadow, bordering the north western edge of Gun Moor. In January 2023 the Trust announced that, thanks to donations, it was able to repay the loan. [5]
The meadow has area 7 acres (2.8 ha). The land will be allowed to rewet, by filling in drainage ditches, and cattle will lightly graze at certain times of the year, so that bog asphodel and cranberry will be re-established; the land will attract wildlife whose habitat has been reduced in recent years. [6]
Staffordshire Moorlands is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. Its council, Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, is based in Leek and is located between the city of Stoke-on-Trent and the Peak District National Park. The 2001 census recorded the population as 94,489.
The Staffordshire Wildlife Trust is a wildlife trust covering the county of Staffordshire, England.
Wiltshire Wildlife Trust is a conservation charity based in Devizes, England which owns and manages 40 nature reserves in Wiltshire and Swindon. It also works to encourage Wiltshire's communities to live sustainable lifestyles that protect the environment.
The Avon Wildlife Trust aims to protect and promote wildlife in the area of the former county of Avon — now Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire, in England. It has its headquarters in Bristol and runs wildlife centres at Folly Farm, Somerset and Feed Bristol, Frenchay, North Bristol.
The Cotswold Water Park is the United Kingdom's largest marl lake system, straddling the Wiltshire–Gloucestershire border, northwest of Cricklade and south of Cirencester. There are 180 lakes, spread over 42 square miles (110 km2).
Coombe Hill Canal lies in the Vale of Gloucester, south west England, north of Leigh and runs west 2.75 miles (4.43 km) from Coombe Hill Basin to the River Severn near Wainlode Hill. It opened in 1796 and closed 80 years later in 1876, after the only lock was damaged by flooding. The Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust purchased the Coombe Hill Canal nature reserve in 1985 and the area is managed by the trust. Adjacent to the Coombe Hill Canal is a large area of wet meadowland situated midway between Gloucester and Tewkesbury to the west of the A38, which was purchased by the trust in 1999. There is a north and a south meadow. This land and the Canal itself often flood in winter, which attracts hundreds of wildfowl.
Hothfield Common is a 56.5-hectare (140-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north-east of Ashford in Kent. It is also a Local Nature Reserve, and is part of the 86-hectare (210-acre) Hothfield Heathlands nature reserve owned by Ashford Borough Council and managed by Kent Wildlife Trust.
Purple moor grass and rush pastures is a type of Biodiversity Action Plan habitat in the UK. It occurs on poorly drained neutral and acidic soils of the lowlands and upland fringe. It is found in the South West of England, especially in Devon.
Driven grouse shooting is the hunting of the red grouse, a field sport of the United Kingdom. The grouse-shooting season extends from 12 August, often called the "Glorious Twelfth", to 10 December each year. Large numbers of grouse are driven to fly over people with shotguns. Driven grouse shooting first appeared around 1850 and became popular in the later Victorian era as a fashionable sport for the wealthy. The expanding rail network allowed relatively easy access into the remote upland areas of Britain for the first time and driven grouse shooting developed in tandem with this by providing shooting in a convenient and reliable form. Large numbers of birds are driven over a fixed position providing a regular supply of fast moving targets without the need to seek out the birds. The development of the breech-loading shotgun was also an essential ingredient in the development of the practice as it allowed more rapid reloading in the field matching the availability of target birds.
Gwent Wildlife Trust (GWT) is a wildlife trust covering the area between the lower Wye and Rhymney rivers which forms the vice county of Monmouthshire in south-east Wales. It is a registered charity and a member of the Wildlife Trusts Partnership.
Red Moor is a nature reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), noted for its biological characteristics, near Lanlivery in mid Cornwall, England, UK.
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.
Mitcheldean Meend Marsh is a 0.7-hectare (1.7-acre) nature reserve in Gloucestershire in the Forest of Dean. The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).
Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows is a 117-hectare (290-acre) nature reserve in Northamptonshire, owned and managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. The character of the reserve is defined by flooded gravel pits and wet grassland, providing an excellent habitat for large variety of wetland flora and fauna.
Ancells Farm is a 12-hectare (30-acre) nature reserve in Fleet in Hampshire. It is managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. It is part of Foxlease and Ancells Meadows, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Totley Moor is an open moorland hill to the west of the Sheffield suburb of Totley, in the Derbyshire Peak District. The summit is 395 metres (1,296 ft) above sea level.
Whitelee Moor is nature reserve of the Northumberland Wildlife Trust, in Northumberland, England, near Carter Bar. A large part of the moor is blanket bog.
Black Brook is a nature reserve of the Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, about 7 miles (11 km) north-east of Leek, in Staffordshire, England.