Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
Location | Gloucestershire |
---|---|
Grid reference | SO662166 |
Coordinates | 51°50′51″N2°29′29″W / 51.847419°N 2.491348°W Coordinates: 51°50′51″N2°29′29″W / 51.847419°N 2.491348°W |
Interest | Biological |
Area | 15.69 hectare |
Notification | 1998 |
Natural England website |
Westbury Brook Ironstone Mine (grid reference SO662166 ) is a 15.69-hectare (38.8-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1998. [1] [2]
The mine is one of a series of Sites of Special Scientific Interest within the Forest of Dean and Wye Valley (Gloucestershire and Monmouthshire). These sites support (between them) breeding and hibernation roosts for Lesser and Greater horseshoe bats. This is of European importance. Other sites in the group in Gloucestershire (all of which are SSSIs) include the breeding sites of Blaisdon Hall, Caerwood And Ashberry Goose House, Dean Hall Coach House & Cellar and Sylvan House Barn. Hibernation sites include Buckshraft Mine & Bradley Hill Railway Tunnel, Devil's Chapel Scowles, Old Bow And Old Ham Mines and Wigpool Ironstone Mine. [1]
The deciduous woodlands and sheltered valleys of the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley provide a good feeding area, and the underground systems provide roosting and breeding sites. A ring of iron-ore bearing Carboniferous Limestone in the Forest of Dean has created a series of ancient and more recent mines which provide hibernation sites. The citations for the series of sites provide common information.
Westbury Brook Ironestone Mine is a recorded hibernation site for both Lesser and Greater Horseshoe bats. The entrances to the site, which are at Scowles, are gated and grilled to protect the bats from interference. [1] [3]
The Westbury Brook Ironstone Mine notification overlaps underground with the Edgehills Quarry notification. The latter is notified for its geological special interest. [1]
Littledean Hall is a country house in the village of Littledean, Gloucestershire, England. It has been described as one of the most haunted houses in England and is thought to be the oldest house in the United Kingdom which is still occupied. Saxon and Celtic remains have been uncovered in the cellars. Part of the house is designated an SSSI as it is a proven breeding roost for the Greater Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum).
Chilmark Quarries is a 9.65 hectare biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), in the ravine south of the village of Chilmark in Wiltshire, England.
Fonthill Grottoes is a 0.69 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, in woodland adjacent to Fonthill Lake in Wiltshire, notified in 1994. Its SSSI designation is due to its roosting bats: the site is the sixth largest hibernaculum in Britain.
Box Mine is a 56.6 ha biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, near the village of Box in Wiltshire, England, notified in 1991.
Sylvan House Barn is a 0.005-hectare (0.012-acre) stone built barn near the village of St Briavels, in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire. Because of its breeding bats, the site was notified as a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1995.
Scowles are landscape features that range from amorphous shallow pits to irregular labyrinthine hollows up to several metres deep and are possibly unique to the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England.
Lady Park Wood National Nature Reserve is a 45-hectare (110-acre) nature reserve straddling the borders of Gloucestershire in England and Monmouthshire in Wales. Most of the wood is in Wales – where it forms Wales' easternmost point – but it is managed under agreement with Natural England.
Upper Wye Gorge is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), noted for its biological and geological characteristics, around Symonds Yat in the Wye Valley on the Wales–England border. The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).
Blaisdon Hall is a Grade II* listed building at Blaisdon. It includes a 0.07-hectare (0.17-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1995.
Brooks Head Grove is an 11.9-hectare (29-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1986. The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).
Buckshaft Mine & Bradley Hill Railway Tunnel is a 5.66-hectare (14.0-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1998. This site comprises two separate locations. One is Buckshaft Mine which is near the village of Ruspidge. The other location is Bradley Hill Railway Tunnel which is near the village of Soudley.
Caerwood And Ashberry Goose House is a 0.01-hectare (0.025-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, England, notified in 1991. The site was previously notified as Caerwood, Tidenham and lies within the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Devil's Chapel Scowles is a 44.79-hectare (110.7-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified England, in 1998. The site lies in the Forest of Dean and has four units of assessment by Natural England.
Edgehills Quarry is a 0.4-hectare (0.99-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1974.
Old Bow And Old Ham Mines is a 40.3-hectare (100-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1998.
Shorn Cliff And Caswell Woods is a 69.2-hectare (171-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1986. The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).
Slade Brook is a 3.63-hectare (9.0-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 2003.
The Hudnalls is a 94.4-hectare (233-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1972. The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).
Wigpool Ironstone Mine is a 34.88-hectare (86.2-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1998.