Nagshead SSSI

Nagshead
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Example: pied flycatcher - woodland supports good populations at Nagshead
Location within Gloucestershire
Area of Search	Gloucestershire
Grid reference	SO608090
Coordinates	51°46′43″N 2°34′08″W / 51.778738°N 2.568874°W / 51.778738; -2.568874Coordinates: 51°46′43″N 2°34′08″W / 51.778738°N 2.568874°W / 51.778738; -2.568874
Interest	Biological
Area	120.12 hectare
Notification	1972
Natural England website

Nagshead (grid reference SO608090) is a 120.12-hectare (296.8-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest and is located near Parkend, in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, and was notified in 1972.^[1]^[2] It lies within the Forest of Dean Forest Park and is part held as a reserve by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).^[1] The SSSI is a relatively small area of the much larger nature reserve of RSPB Nagshead, which is a 1,250 acres (510 ha) site owned and managed by the RSPB and the Forestry Commission. The SSSI lies to the east of the Nagshead Plantation and consists of two units of assessment by Natural England.

The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).^[3]

History

The woodland in the Forest of Dean has been managed for timber for a significant time. As a consequence there is a variety of woodland types as a result of the woodland management. The central area of woodland is in the Coal Measures and this area supports oak with restricted ground flora. This is an acidic area. Around it are the limestone and Old Red Sandstone rocks. These provide soils which are more fertile and a richer ground flora.^[1]

The Nagshead site is one of three sites in the Forest of Dean which are of national nature conservation importance. It is an excellent example of broad-leaved woodland and is of major ornithological importance. The oldest part of the site was planted in 1814 and includes pedunculate oak and sessile oak.^[1]

Understorey

The ground flora of the understorey varies dependent upon whether the woodland is grazed by sheep. A dense shrub layer which is dominated by holly and rowan occurs in the ungrazed areas. Grazed areas are more open. Herb layers consists of bramble, bracken, softgrass and tufted hair grass. wood sorrel and bluebell are locally abundant.^[1]

Ponds and streams

The Cannop Brook runs within the site and there are semi-natural area of woodland (mostly alder). The diversity of the habitat is enhanced by small ponds and streams and there are rarer plants reported such as heath spotted orchid and broad-leaved helleborine.^[1]

Birdlife

This is an area which is rich in bird life and there are established populations of breeding pied flycatcher, wood warbler and redstart. There has been long established research into the breeding biology of various birds at Nagshead and there is a nestbox scheme managed by the RSPB.^[1]

Invertebrates

Butterflies are attracted by the open rides and recordings including white admiral, pearl-bordered fritillary and purple hairstreak. The Cannop Brook supports a good range of woodland invertebrates.^[1]

Conservation

The unit reports for 2009 indicate the need for a watching brief on the presence of sweet chestnut and sycamore. Implications of the lack of grazing are noted and how this may affect the woodland structure necessary for some breeding birds.^[4]

References

SSSI Source

External links

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)
Forestry Commission
Natural England (SSSI information)

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

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