Whisby Moor is a small moor situated close to the A46 road, west of North Hykeham, in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England.
Whisby Moor is situated geographically 5 miles (8 km) south-west from Lincoln city centre, with the village of Whisby less than 1 mile (1.6 km) to the north-west. The Nottingham-Lincoln Line runs through the Moor. The southern part of the Moor, including the Natural World Centre is in the parish of Thorpe on the Hill.
Former sand and gravel pits have been filled and turned into mesotrophic lakes, surrounded by wet willow scrub and now form part of Whisby Nature Park. The nature reserve was established in 1985. The park opened in 1989 on either side of the Nottingham to Lincoln railway line. It was designated a Local Nature Reserve in 2002. [1] [2]
The park has breeds of Shetland cattle and is home to a variety of bird species including wigeon, teal, tufted duck, pochard and goldeneye, great crested grebes, mallard and kingfisher, [3] which can be observed from several bird hides. Whisby holds a substantial population of nightingales, which have become synonymous with the reserve. The park is also home to the Hazel Pot Beetle, a leaf beetle of the Cryptocephalinae subfamily; it was released into the park in November 2000. Plants include Dactylorhiza praetermissa , Trifolium arvense and a bicolour form of Cytisus scoparius .
A visitor centre has been established at Whisby nature reserve, known as the Natural World Centre and is run on behalf of North Kesteven District Council. [4] The nature reserve hosts training courses, talks and events for children. [5]
Many unusual animals and plants are found in Whisby. For example, in 2018 large numbers of bird watchers were attracted to the reserve to see a melanistic blue tit. [6] Not all parts of the nature reserve are open to the public and some areas are grazed by cattle and sheep to promote the growth of smaller plants. In 2017 The Guardian included Whisby Nature Park in a list of five of the best birdwatching sites in the UK, particularly as a place to hear nightingales. [7]
Lincolnshire, abbreviated Lincs, is a ceremonial county and will be from 2025 a Mayoral combined county authority known as Greater Lincolnshire which is located in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to the north, the North Sea to the east, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire and Rutland to the south, and Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and South Yorkshire to the west. The county town is the city of Lincoln. Lincolnshire is the second largest ceremonial county in England, after North Yorkshire.
National nature reserves in England are designated by Natural England as key places for wildlife and natural features in England. They were established to protect the most significant areas of habitat and of geological formations. NNRs are managed on behalf of the nation, many by Natural England itself, but also by non-governmental organisations, including the members of The Wildlife Trusts partnership, the National Trust, and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
Ancaster is a village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, on the site of a Roman town. The population of the civil parish was 1,317 at the 2001 census, increasing to 1,647 at the 2011 census. The civil parish includes the settlements of Sudbrook and West Willoughby.
The Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust,, covers the whole ceremonial county of Lincolnshire, England. It was founded in 1948 as a voluntary charitable organisation dedicated to conserving the wildlife and wild places of Lincolnshire and to promoting the understanding and enjoyment of the natural world.
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