Fonthill Grottoes

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.

The site consists of three subterranean Grotto follies, constructed in the 18th century, split between two areas, one on the western side of the lake, at grid reference ST933316 and one on the eastern side at grid reference ST937315.

The three follies are named "The Dark Walks", "The Hermitage" and "The Quarry".

Biological interest

The site is used as a hibernation roost site by up to 207 bats of up to nine species. Greater and Lesser Horseshoe Bats are among seven species which roost here on a regular basis, and Bechstein's Bat and Barbastelle, two species rare in Britain, have each been recorded on several occasions.

Sources

English Nature citation sheet for the site (accessed 25 July 2006)

External links

English Nature website (SSSI information)

Biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Wiltshire

Acres Farm Meadow River Avon System Baverstock Juniper Bank Bencroft Hill Meadows Bentley Wood Bincknoll Dip Woods Blackmoor Copse Botley Down Bowerchalke Downs Box Mine Bracknell Croft Bradley Woods Bratton Downs Brickworth Down and Dean Hill Brimsdown Hill Britford Water Meadows Burcombe Down Burderop Wood Calstone and Cherhill Downs Camp Down Chilmark Quarries Chickengrove Bottom Chilton Foliat Meadows Clattinger Farm Clearbury Down Cley Hill Cloatley Manor Farm Meadows Clout's Wood Coate Water Cockey Down Colerne Park and Monk's Wood The Coombes, Hinton Parva Cotswold Water Park Cranborne Chase Dank's Down and Truckle Hill Distillery Farm Meadows East Harnham Meadows Ebsbury Down Emmett Hill Meadows Figsbury Ring Fonthill Grottoes Fyfield Down Gallows Hill Goldborough Farm Meadows Great Cheverell Hill Great Yews Gutch Common Ham Hill Hang Wood Harries Ground, Rodbourne Haydon Meadow Heath Hill Farm Homington and Coombe Bissett Downs Honeybrook Farm Inwood, Warleigh Jones's Mill River Kennet Kennet and Lambourn Floodplain King's Play Hill Knapp and Barnett's Downs Knighton Downs and Wood Landford Bog Landford Heath Langley Wood and Homan's Copse Little Grubbins Meadow Long Knoll Loosehanger Copse and Meadows Lower Coombe and Ferne Brook Meadows Lower Woodford Water Meadows Midford Valley Woods Morgan's Hill The New Forest North Meadow, Cricklade Odstock Down Out Woods Parsonage Down Pewsey Downs Picket and Clanger Wood Piggledene Pike Corner Pincombe Down Porton Down Porton Meadows Prescombe Down Rack Hill Ravensroost Wood Restrop Farm and Brockhurst Wood Rotherley Downs Roundway Down and Covert Salisbury Plain Savernake Forest Scratchbury & Cotley Hills Silbury Hill Spye Park Starveall and Stony Down Steeple Langford Down Stockton Wood and Down Stoke Common Meadows Stratford Toney Down Sutton Lane Meadows Throope Down River Till Tytherington Down Upper Waterhay Meadow Upton Cow Down West Yatton Down Whiteparish Common Whitesheet Hill Win Green Down Winklebury Hill Winsley Mines Wylye and Church Dean Downs Yarnbury Castle

Neighbouring areas Avon Berkshire Dorset Gloucestershire Hampshire Oxfordshire Somerset

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