| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
 | |
| Location | Hampshire |
|---|---|
| Grid reference | SU 538 033 [1] |
| Interest | Biological |
| Area | 134.5 hectares (332 acres) [1] |
| Notification | 1983 [1] |
| Location map | Magic Map |
Titchfield Haven is a 134.5-hectare (332-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north-west of Gosport in Hampshire. [1] [2] Most of it is a local nature reserve [3] [4] and a national nature reserve. [5] It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site [6] and Special Protection Area. [7]
Until late in the 16th century, the River Meon was navigable as far as Titchfield, which at that time was a significant port. However silting started to restrict the passage of ships, and in order to maintain Titchfield's status as a port, the Earl of Southampton proposed that a canal should be constructed. The Titchfield Canal opened in 1611 and was only the second canal existing in Britain at the time. Unfortunately the canal also suffered from silting and the sea trade moved to nearby Southampton and Portsmouth. As part of the construction of the canal, the outfall of the River Meon to the sea was dammed, creating the wetlands that now form the nature reserve. [8]
This was formerly a tidal estuary, but one way valves block salt water and it is now freshwater river and marshes, wet meadows bisected by ditches, and fen. It is important for wetland breeding birds, such as bearded reedlings, sedge warblers and reed warblers. [9]
The site is managed to provide ideal conditions at different times of the year, with water levels lowered at the end of the waterfowl breeding season in order to expose food-rich mud to encourage migrating birds. [10] Other areas of water are cleared in order to attract dragonflies and damselflies. [11] Frogbit and flowering rush are also encouraged to grow because of this water management. Other flora include slender bird's-foot-trefoil and marsh mallow. [12] The site is a winter refuge for ducks, geese and wading birds and avocet are known to use the location as a breeding ground in the summer months. [13] The Walkway Pond is home to dragonflies, damselflies, moorhen, mallard and a variety of warblers. Water voles have been reintroduced to the reserve and the River Meon, as part of a project by South Downs National Park, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust and The Environment Agency. [14] The reserve has a number of hides, Cottage Hide, Meon Shore Hide, Knights Bank Hide, Meadow Hide, Pumfrett Hide, Spurgin Hide, Suffern Hide and West Hide, from which it is possible to observe the local wildlife, which includes fox and deer as well as waterfowl. [12] [15]
The site is open seven days a week, including Bank Holidays (excluding 25 and 26 December) 9.30am - 5pm during the summer and 9.30am - 4pm in the winter. Admission is by ticket, available from the Titchfield Haven Visitor Centre. Car parking is available close to the Reserve at the Hove To Car Park and also on the Sea Front - Chargeable from 10:00 to 18:00. The site has toilets (with wheelchair access), a tea room, a shop and an exhibition in the Visitor Centre. [12] In 2022, Hampshire County Council declared its intention to close and sell the visitor centre. [16]
The River Meon is a chalk stream in Hampshire in the south of England. It rises at East Meon then flows 34 km (21 mi) in a generally southerly direction to empty into the Solent at Hill Head near Stubbington. Above Wickham, the river runs through the South Downs National Park.
Titchfield is a village in southern Hampshire, by the River Meon. The village has a history stretching back to the 6th century. During the medieval period, the village operated a small port and market. Near to the village are the ruins of Titchfield Abbey, a place with strong associations with Shakespeare, through his patron, the Earl of Southampton.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust is a Wildlife Trust with 27,000 members across the counties of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, England.
Chessel Bay is a 12.9-hectare (32-acre) Local Nature Reserve on the east bank of the River Itchen in Southampton in Hampshire. It is owned and managed by Southampton City Council. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Lee-on-The Solent to Itchen Estuary, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. It has been a local nature reserve since 1989
River Hamble Country Park is a 144.1-hectare (356-acre) Local Nature Reserve which runs along the west bank of the River Hamble between the villages of Botley and Bursledon in Hampshire. It is owned by Hampshire County Council and managed by Hampshire Countryside Service. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation. Part of it is in Upper Hamble Estuary and Woods, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Sowley Pond is a 49.3-hectare (122-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Lymington in Hampshire. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area. It is an important refuge for both surface feeding and diving ducks and functions as an integral part of the marshland system of the west Solent.
Castle Bottom is a British national nature reserve located near Yateley in Hampshire. It is part of Castle Bottom to Yateley and Hawley Commons, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area for the conservation of wild birds
Hurst Castle and Lymington River Estuary is a 1,077.3-hectare (2,662-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near Lymington in Hampshire. It is a Nature Conservation Review site and two areas are Geological Conservation Review sites. Three areas are local nature reserves, Boldre Foreshore, Sturt Pond and Lymington and Keyhaven Marshes; the latter site is managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. Part of it is North Solent National Nature Reserve. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area. Parts of it are in Solent Maritime and Solent and Isle of Wight Lagoons Special Areas of Conservation.
Hythe to Calshot Marshes is a 591.8-hectare (1,462-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches along the west bank of Southampton Water between Calshot and Marchwood in Hampshire. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation. Calshot Marshes is a Local Nature Reserve and Hythe Spartina Marsh is a nature reserve managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust.
Lee-on-The Solent to Itchen Estuary is a 585.9-hectare (1,448-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches along the coast between Southampton and Gosport in Hampshire. It is a Geological Conservation Review site. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation. Three areas are Local Nature Reserves, Chessel Bay, Hook with Warsash and Mercury Marshes. One area is Hamble Common Camp, a Scheduled Monument.
Lincegrove and Hackett's Marshes is a 37.8-hectare (93-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest on the west bank of the River Hamble between Southampton and Fareham in Hampshire. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation. Hackett's Marsh is a 20.4 hectares Local Nature Reserve.
Lower Test Valley is a 142-hectare (350-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest near Totton in Hampshire. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation. It is a nature reserve managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust.
Lymington River Reedbeds is a 41.7-hectare (103-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Lymington in Hampshire. It is a nature reserve managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area.
North Solent is a 1,186.7-hectare (2,932-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest along the north bank of the Solent between East End and Calshot in Hampshire. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I. Part of it is in North Solent National Nature Reserve and two areas are Geological Conservation Review sites. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation. Boldre Foreshore is a local nature reserve.
Upper Hamble Estuary and Woods is a 151.2-hectare (374-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Southampton in Hampshire. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation. Part of the site is in Manor Farm Country Park, which is a Local Nature Reserve.
Hook with Warsash is a 251.6-hectare (622-acre) Local Nature Reserve west of Fareham in Hampshire. It is owned by Hampshire County Council and managed by Hampshire Countryside Service. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation, and of Lee-on-The Solent to Itchen Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Lymington and Keyhaven Marshes is a 738-hectare (1,820-acre) nature reserve which stretches from Keyhaven along the south coast across the Lymington River in Hampshire. It is managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area. Some areas are part of two Special Areas of Conservation, Solent and Isle of Wight Lagoons and Solent Maritime and Solent. It is also part of Hurst Castle and Lymington River Estuary, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and of North Solent Marshes Nature Conservation Review site, Grade 2. Two areas are Geological Conservation Review sites, and two are Local Nature Reserves, Boldre Foreshore and Lymington-Keyhaven Marshes.
Sturt Pond is a 10.9-hectare (27-acre) Local Nature Reserve in Milford on Sea in Hampshire. It is owned and managed by Milford On Sea Parish Council. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation and of Hurst Castle and Lymington River Estuary, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Coordinates: 50°49′37″N1°14′17″W / 50.827°N 1.238°W
