Lower Woods

Lower Woods
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Gateway and path at Lower Woods Nature Reserve
Location within Gloucestershire
Area of Search	Gloucestershire
Grid reference	ST743876
Coordinates	51°35′13″N 2°22′23″W / 51.587°N 2.373°W / 51.587; -2.373Coordinates: 51°35′13″N 2°22′23″W / 51.587°N 2.373°W / 51.587; -2.373
Interest	Biological/Geological
Area	280.1 hectare
Notification	1966
Natural England website

Confluence of streams and a bridge on the edge of Lower Woods Nature Reserve

Lower Woods (grid reference ST743876) is a 280.1-hectare (692-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the village of Wickwar, South Gloucestershire, notified in 1966 and renotified in 1985. The site area has increased at last revision in 1974 to a 284.1-hectare (702-acre) site. The site is a nature reserve managed by the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust.

Lower Woods are the most extensive area of ancient woodlands and seminatural woodland in the former county of Avon and now in South Gloucestershire. It is one of the largest ancient woodlands in the south-west of England and covers some three square kilometres. There are three waymarked trails and over sixty miles of paths, rides and wide grassy 'trenches' (ancient roads).^[1]

This large reserve is made up of twenty-three woods and coppices, the boundaries of which have remained unchanged for several centuries. The woods are linked by a network of grass trenches and ridges. The Little Avon River runs through the centre of the site. The woods are situated in the damp clay soils of the Vale of Berkeley and are made up of the distinct woodlands as well as grassland areas.^[2]

The site is adjacent to Yarley Meadows which is also an SSSI.

Geology

The site contains significant exposures of clays, shales, limestones and bone-beds (Rhaetic time period). These would have been laid down some 200 million years ago in a shallow sea. The exposures in this area have been a source of research for some 150 years, notably the units called the Westbury Beds, the Cotham Beds and the Liostrea Beds. The site has two horizons of Landscape Marble and outcrops of conglomeratic bone-beds (in the Westbury shales). The latter contain a significant amount of fossil fish, and sedimentological features.^[3]

The woodland

Fuller information is available from the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust nature reserves handbook^[2] and the Trust publication on the natural history of the site.^[4] Large parts of the woodland are traditional coppice-with-standards, with pedunculate oak and ash over hazel coppice. There is a wide range other shrubs including field maple, holly, goat willow, spindle, wild privet, midland hawthorn and guelder-rose. There are dense stands of wild service tree which is an indicator of ancient woodland. There is some sessile oak and along the riverside alder. Some of the wood has developed to a high forest structure.

Woodland flowers

Fuller information is available from the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust nature reserves handbook.^[2] Typical woodland flowers include bluebell, wood anemone, early-purple orchid, primrose, ramsons (wood garlic), common dog-violet and yellow archangel. Uncommon species are meadow saffron, herb-paris, common cow-wheat, bitter-vetch and violet helleborine. The grassy rides support betony, devil's-bit scabious, saw-wort, common spotted-orchid, greater knapweed, greater butterfly-orchid, cowslip and yellow-rattle. The damper rides supports lesser spearwort, ragged-robin, marsh ragwort, brooklime and various sedges and rushes.

Mammals, birds and invertebrates

The site supports common dormouse and lesser horseshoe bat in particular. The site is considered as the most important in South Gloucestershire for nightingales. Also recorded are woodcock, lesser spotted woodpecker, wood warbler, tawny owl and turtle dove. The grassy rises, meadows and open coppice areas are ideal for rarer butterflies including white admiral, purple hairstreak, silver-washed fritillary, dingy skipper and brown argus.

Conservation

The main aims are to monitor the maintenance and enhancement of existing grassland areas, the coppice regimes and to remove exotic species of conifer and hybrid poplar. Coppice must be maintained at-standards. Scrub cutting is done in the original trenches, ensuring exposure of the old wood banks and ditches.

Publications

Kelham, A, Sanderson, J, Doe, J, Edgeley-Smith, M, et al., 1979, 1990, 2002 editions, 'Nature Reserves of the Gloucestershire Trust for Nature Conservation/Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust'
Martin M (editor), 1996, 2004 (revised second edition), 'Lower Woods Nature Reserve – A Guide', Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust
Martin M, Rowlatt, S (editors), 2001(published), 'The Natural History of Lower Woods in 2000 AD', Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, (includes list of contributors)
'Lower Woods Nature Reserve – Information and Waymarked Walks', (undated), Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust

References

↑ 2011, 'Nature Reserves Guide', Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, issued to celebrate its 50th Anniversary
1 2 3 Kelham, A, Sanderson, J, Doe, J, Edgeley-Smith, M, et al, 1979, 1990, 2002 editions, 'Nature Reserves of the Gloucestershire Trust for Nature Conservation/Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust'
↑ Natural England SSSI information on the citation
↑ Martin M, Rowlatt, S (editors), 2001(published), 'The Natural History of Lower Woods in 2000 AD', Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, (includes list of contributors)

SSSI source

External links

Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust
Natural England (SSSI information)

Biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Avon

Ashton Court Avon Gorge Banwell Caves Biddle Street, Yatton Bishop's Hill Wood Blagdon Lake Bodkin Hazel Wood Brockley Hall Stables Brown's Folly Burledge Sidelands and Meadows Burrington Combe Chew Valley Lake Cleaves Wood Cleeve Wood, Hanham Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines Compton Martin Ochre Mine Congrove Field and The Tumps Dolebury Warren Ellenborough Park West Folly Farm Goblin Combe Gordano Valley Harptree Combe Hawkesbury Meadow Hinton Charterhouse Field Horseshoe Bend, Shirehampton Iford Manor King's Wood and Urchin Wood Long Dole Wood and Meadows Lower Woods Max Bog Middle Hope Midger Monkswood Valley Plaster's Green Meadows Purn Hill Puxton Moor Severn Estuary Shiplate Slait St. Catherine's Valley Steep Holm Tickenham, Nailsea and Kenn Moors Uphill Cliff Upton Coombe Walton Common Weston Big Wood Yanal Bog

Neighbouring areas Gloucestershire Somerset Wiltshire

Geological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Avon

Aust Cliff Avon Gorge Banwell Caves Banwell Ochre Caves Barnhill Quarry Barns Batch Spinney Bickley Wood Bleadon Hill Bourne Bowlditch Quarry Brinkmarsh Quarry Brown's Folly Buckover Road Cutting Burrington Combe Cattybrook Brickpit Clevedon Shore Compton Martin Ochre Mine Court Hill Cullimore's Quarry Damery Road Section Dundry Main Road South Quarry Gordano Valley Ham Green Hampton Rocks Cutting Hartcliff Rocks Quarry Hawkesbury Quarry Hinton Charterhouse Pit Hinton Hill, Wellow Holly Lane Huish Colliery Quarry Kenn Church, Kenn Pier & Yew Tree Farm Kilmersdon Road Quarry Lower Woods Lulsgate Quarry Middle Hope Newton St Loe Nightingale Valley North Road Quarry, Bath Portishead Pier to Black Nore Quarry Steps, Durdham Down Severn Estuary Slickstones Quarry, Cromhall Spring Cove Cliffs Stidham Farm Tytherington Quarry Weston-in-Gordano Winterbourne Railway Cutting Writhlington

Neighbouring areas Gloucestershire Somerset Wiltshire

Biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire

Summarised data for all sites (biological and geological)

Ashleworth Ham Astridge Wood Badgeworth Barnsley Warren Barton Bushes Bigsweir Woods Blaisdon Hall Bourton Down Box Farm Meadows Boxwell Brassey Brooks Head Grove Buckshraft Mine & Bradley Railway Tunnel Bull Cross, The Frith and Juniper Hill Bushley Muzzard, Brimpsfield Caerwood and Ashberry Goose House Chaceley Meadow Clarke's Pool Meadow Cleeve Common Cockleford Marsh Collinpark Wood Coombe Hill Canal Coombe Hill Cotswold Commons and Beechwoods Cotswold Water Park Crickley Hill and Barrow Wake Daneway Banks Dean Hall Coach House & Cellar Devil's Chapel Scowles Dingle Wood Dixton Wood Dymock Woods Edge Common Elmlea Meadows Frampton Pools Highbury Wood Hobbs Quarry Hornsleasow Roughs Hucclecote Meadows Innsworth Meadow Juniper Hill, Edgeworth Kempley Daffodil Meadow Kingscote and Horsley Woods Lark Wood Leckhampton Hill and Charlton Kings Common Lineover Wood Lower Woods Lower Wye Gorge May Hill Midger Minchinhampton Common Nagshead Old Bow and Old Ham Mines Old River Severn, Upper Lode Pennsylvania Fields, Sedbury Poor's Allotment Puckham Woods Range Farm Fields River Wye Rodborough Common Rough Bank, Miserden Salmonsbury Meadows Selsley Common Severn Estuary Severn Ham, Tewkesbury Shorn Cliff and Caswell Woods Slade Brook Soudley Ponds Speech House Oaks Stenders Quarry Stinchcombe Hill Strawberry Banks Swanpool Wood and Furnace Grove Swift's Hill Sylvan House Barn The Hudnalls The Malvern Hills Tudor Farm Bank Turvey's Piece Upper Severn Estuary Upham Meadow and Summer Leasow Upper Wye Gorge Walmore Common Westbury Brook Ironstone Mine Whelford Meadow Wigpool Ironstone Mine Wildmoorway Meadows Winson Meadows Woodchester Park Workman's Wood Wotton Hill Yarley Meadows

Neighbouring areas Avon Hereford and Worcester Oxfordshire Wiltshire

Geological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire

Summarised data for all sites (biological and geological)

Alderton Hill Quarry Bull Cross, The Frith and Juniper Hill Campden Tunnel Gravel Pit Cleeve Common Coaley Wood Quarries Crickley Hill and Barrow Wake Easter Park Farm Quarry Edgehills Quarry Foss Cross Quarry Garden Cliff Hampen Railway Cutting Haresfield Beacon Harford Railway Cutting Hobbs Quarry Hornsleasow Quarry Huntsman's Quarry Jackdaw Quarry Kemble Railway Cuttings Knap House Quarry, Birdlip Land Grove Quarry, Mitcheldean Leckhampton Hill and Charlton Kings Common Longhope Hill Lower Woods Lower Wye Gorge Lydney Cliff May Hill Meezy Hurst Minchinhampton Common New Park Quarry Nibley Knoll Notgrove Railway Cutting Oakenhill Railway Cutting Puddlebrook Quarry River Wye Robin's Wood Hill Quarry Rodborough Common Salmonsbury Meadows Scully Grove Quarry Severn Estuary Slade Brook Stenders Quarry Stony Furlong Railway Cutting Swift's Hill Upper Severn Estuary The Malvern Hills Purton Passage Selsley Common Upper Wye Gorge Veizey's Quarry Wainlode Cliff Wellacre Quarry Wood Green Quarry & Railway Cutting Wotton Hill

Neighbouring areas Avon Hereford and Worcester Oxfordshire Wiltshire

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