Districts:
West Oxfordshire Parishes
Little Faringdon
The following wildlife habitats fall within this parish. They are listed according to their associated landscape type or local character area.
If you want more information about any of the sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) listed below, take a look at English Nature's Nature on the Map website. It may also be possible to find out a bit more about the unnamed wildlife habitats in the parish by contacting the Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre (owls@oxfordshire.gov.uk) and quoting the site code next to the habitat description.
The majority of these wildlife habitats are on private land and access to them is not possible without permission of the landowner, unless there is a statutory right of way. However, many wildlife habitats in the county are open to the public. More information on these can be obtained from the Oxfordshire Nature Conservation Forum.
Wildlife Habitats
River Meadowlands
Site Code: 20A01
Area: 20.1 ha
This site is a pit where gravel was extracted until the early 1980s. Since then wetland plants and willows have colonised the edges while aquatic plants and insects have colonised the water. Around the lake, grassland has developed.
The gravel pit is particularly important for birds especially for overwintering wildfowl but also for nesting birds. These include species that have been classified as being of conservation concern due to the decline in their populations. Pochard, wigeon, gadwall, teal, pintail, shoveler, goldeneye and scaup have been seen here in the winter. Other birds recorded include kingfisher, lapwing, grey wagtail and linnet.
Colourful wetland wildflowers grow at the edge including purple loosestrife, yellow loosestrife, water mint and meadowsweet in amongst patches of rushes, sedges and reeds. Among the insects recorded are a nationally scarce beetle and the nationally scarce scarlet tiger moth.