Rea Brook Valley

Last updated

Rea Brook Valley is a country park, and Local Nature Reserve located in the town of Shrewsbury in Shropshire and is recognised nationwide as an important site for wildlife. This park is also known for its history in the Severn Valley Railway line. The Rea Brook is the watercourse that flows through the park.

Contents

Location

This site can be found near the centre of Shrewsbury, at 52°41′33″N2°44′12″W / 52.69259°N 2.73678°W / 52.69259; -2.73678 .

Ownership

This site is owned by Shropshire Council, the valley travels east to south from Shrewsbury centre, and is a local nature reserve for Shropshire. [1] Footpaths and cycle tracks are present on site. [2]

Wildlife

It is nationally recognised as an important site for wildlife, [2] as this valley acts as a green corridor for wildlife in the middle of Shrewsbury town. [1] Conservation management of this site is carried out by Shropshire council who maintain the ancient meadows by using traditional grassland management regimes, they also protect the wetland habitats and creating new meadow, wetland and woodland habitats in low wildlife interest sites. [2]

Species found at this site include Kingfishers, Otters, Buzzards, and Orchids. [3] In particular a Common Spotted Orchid was recently discovered in this site, and though this is not a rare species in the UK this was the first time it was found in the area for 25 years, and serves as a good indicator that the management of the site is working and improving the biodiversity of this site. [3] Management includes grazing, and hay-making all part of the traditional grassland management. [3]

History and Railway

In the past this site was once a Severn Valley Railway line, and the embankments and tunnels are still visible today. [1] The Severn Valley Railway was once used for transport of business for 101 years, starting from 1862 to 1963. Presently the Railway company is used in education, tourist, and leisure, this began at Bridgnorth in 1970, extending their service in 1974 to Bewdley, and again in 1984 to Kidderminster. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust</span> Organization

The Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust is the Gloucestershire local partner in a conservation network of 46 Wildlife Trusts. The Wildlife Trusts are local charities with the specific aim of protecting the United Kingdom's natural heritage. The Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust is managed by a board of trustees elected from its membership who provide overall direction for the development of the trust and there are advisory committees. The work of the trust is carried out through staff and volunteers.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rea Brook</span> River in Shropshire, England

The name Rea Brook can refer to either of two brooks in Shropshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cotswold Water Park</span>

The Cotswold Water Park is the United Kingdom's largest marl lake system, straddling the Wiltshire–Gloucestershire border, north-west of Cricklade and south of Cirencester. There are 180 lakes, spread over 42 square miles (110 km2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coombe Hill Canal</span> Canal in the United Kingdom

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meole Brace</span> Suburb of Shrewsbury, England

Meole Brace, sometimes known locally as simply MeoleMEE-əl, is a south-western suburb of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telford Town Park</span> Park located in Telford, Shropshire

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Riddy</span>

The Riddy is an 8.4 hectare flood meadow and Local Nature Reserve located in Sandy, Bedfordshire, United Kingdom, bordering the River Ivel. Owned by Sandy Town Council but managed by both the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity, the 7.7 hectares site gains its name from a small stream which flows through the eastern end of the reserve. The different habitats in the Riddy support a diverse range of species, including a multiplicity of grasses and flowering plants in the meadows, aquatic plants and water voles which inhabit the ditches, ponds and stream, and birds which feed and hunt across the reserve.

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.

Severn Valley Country Park is a country park in England, located near Alveley, Shropshire, 8 miles (13 km) from Bridgnorth, 7 miles from Kidderminster, roughly central in the Severn Valley. Originally the site of a huge coal mine, it is now a 126-acre (51 ha) park consisting of woodland, meadows and riverside banks with views over the River Severn and a Green Flag Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gunnersbury Triangle</span> Nature reserve in Ealing and Hounslow, UK

Gunnersbury Triangle is a 2.57-hectare (6.4-acre) local nature reserve in Chiswick, in the London boroughs of Ealing and Hounslow, immediately to the east of Gunnersbury. It was created in 1983 when, for the first time in Britain, a public inquiry ruled that a planned development of the land could not go ahead because of its value for nature. It opened as a nature reserve in 1985.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Three Brooks Local Nature Reserve</span> Park in Bradley Stoke, United Kingdom

The Three Brooks Nature Reserve is a Local Nature Reserve of approximately 44 hectares in Bradley Stoke, South Gloucestershire, England. It is named after the Hortham, Patchway, and Stoke Brooks which run through it, meeting at Three Brooks Lake before flowing eastwards back under the M4 motorway as Bradley Brook.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salmonsbury Meadows SSSI</span>

Salmonsbury Meadows is an 18-hectare (44-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1985. The site is listed in the 'Cotswold District' Local Plan 2001-2011 as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown Moss</span>

Brown Moss is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, Local Nature Reserve and important wetland area rich in wildlife close to Whitchurch, Shropshire. It is open to visitors and contains a number of self-guided walking trails. The name 'moss' derives from the local word for a peat bog.

Colemere Countryside Site is a countryside heritage site. Due to its important conservation status it has two key designations being a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and an internationally important Ramsar wetland site. 3 miles (4.8 km) south-east of Ellesmere, Shropshire.

Lyth Hill is a Local Nature Reserve in Shropshire which contains valuable habitats for wildlife and is associated with the novelist and poet Mary Webb.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poles Coppice countryside site</span>

Poles Coppice countryside site is an area of ancient oak woodland with disused quarry workings, located around 0.5 miles (1 km) south of Pontesbury, Shropshire. It is managed by Shropshire Council as a picnic spot and area for walking and recreation activities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows</span>

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ulverscroft Valley</span>

Ulverscroft Valley is a 110.8 hectares biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north-west of Markfield in Leicestershire. The site is in five separate blocks, and two areas are nature reserves managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust (LRWT). Lea Meadows is owned by the LRWT and it is also a scheduled monument. Part of Ulverscroft Nature Reserve is owned by the LRWT and part is owned by the National Trust and leased to the LRWT.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Natural England. "Local Nature Reserves". Date retrieved: 1 August 2013
  2. 1 2 3 Shropshire Council "Reabrook Valley Country Park". Date retrieved 1 August 2013
  3. 1 2 3 Shrewsbury Town Council "Shrewsbury Town Council Countryside Unit". Date retrieved: 1 August 2013
  4. ↑ Severn Valley Railway "Origins of severn valley railway line". Date retrieved: 1 August 2013
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.