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Alpine Meadow, Berkhamsted
Alpine Meadow is a 0.4 hectare nature reserve near Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom. It is a designated biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), managed by the Hertfordshire and Middlesex Wildlife Trust and the planning authority is Dacorum Borough Council. Habitat The small site is a steeply sloping area of meadow and woodland, and it has been designated an SSSI as a rare example of unimproved chalk grassland. Grass species include upright brome, false brome and sheep's fescue, and there are many orchids, especially common twayblade and common spotted orchid. There are also many butterflies, such as marbled white and the rare Duke of Burgundy. The woodland has birds such as green woodpeckers and finches. The site is always open and there is access by a footpath from Bridle Way. See also *List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Hertfordshire A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nature Reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for purposes of conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research. They may be designated by government institutions in some countries, or by private landowners, such as charities and research institutions. Nature reserves fall into different IUCN categories depending on the level of protection afforded by local laws. Normally it is more strictly protected than a nature park. Various jurisdictions may use other terminology, such as ecological protection area or private protected area in legislation and in official titles of the reserves. History Cultural practices that roughly equate to the establishment and maintenance of reserved areas for animals date bac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Berkhamsted
Berkhamsted ( ) is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, in the Bulbourne valley, north-west of London. The town is a civil parish with a town council within the borough of Dacorum which is based in the neighbouring large new town of Hemel Hempstead. Berkhamsted, along with the adjoining village of Northchurch, is encircled by countryside, much of it in the Chiltern Hills which is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). The High Street is on a pre-Roman route known by its Saxon name: Akeman Street. The earliest written reference to Berkhamsted was in 970. The settlement was recorded as a ''Burbium'' (ancient borough) in the Domesday Book in 1086. The most notable event in the town's history occurred in December 1066. After William the Conqueror defeated King Harold's Anglo-Saxon army at the Battle of Hastings, the Anglo-Saxon leadership surrendered to the Norman encampment at Berkhamsted. The event was recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. From 1066 to 149 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For government statistical purposes, it forms part of the East of England region. Hertfordshire covers . It derives its name – via the name of the county town of Hertford – from a hart (stag) and a ford, as represented on the county's coat of arms and on the flag. Hertfordshire County Council is based in Hertford, once the main market town and the current county town. The largest settlement is Watford. Since 1903 Letchworth has served as the prototype garden city; Stevenage became the first town to expand under post-war Britain's New Towns Act of 1946. In 2013 Hertfordshire had a population of about 1,140,700, with Hemel Hempstead, Stevenage, Watford and St Albans (the county's only ''city'') each having between 50,000 and 100,000 r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Site Of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of Man. SSSI/ASSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in the United Kingdom are based upon them, including national nature reserves, Ramsar sites, Special Protection Areas, and Special Areas of Conservation. The acronym "SSSI" is often pronounced "triple-S I". Selection and conservation Sites notified for their biological interest are known as Biological SSSIs (or ASSIs), and those notified for geological or physiographic interest are Geological SSSIs (or ASSIs). Sites may be divided into management units, with some areas including units that are noted for both biological and geological interest. Biological Biological SSSI/ASSIs may ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hertfordshire And Middlesex Wildlife Trust
Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust manages over 40 nature reserves covering nearly north of London, in Hertfordshire and the historic county of Middlesex, part of which is divided between the London boroughs of Barnet, Enfield, Harrow and Hillingdon. It has over 21,000 members, and is one of 46 Wildlife Trusts across the UK. It is a Registered Charity, with its Registered Office in St Albans, and had an income in the year to 31 March 2014 of over £1.5 million. The trust's activities include managing nature reserves, advising landowners on how to manage their land for wildlife, commenting on planning applications, advising planning authorities and campaigning to protect wildlife. The trust also encourages people to be active volunteers helping to maintain nature reserves. The first preparatory meeting of what was to become the trust was held on 16 November 1963, and the Hertfordshire & Middlesex Trust for Nature Conservation was incorporated on 9 October 1964. By 1970 it h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dacorum Borough Council
The Borough of Dacorum is a local government district in Hertfordshire, England that includes the towns of Hemel Hempstead, Berkhamsted, Tring and Kings Langley. The district, which was formed in 1974, had a population of 137,799 in 2001. Its name was taken from the old hundred of Dacorum which covered approximately the same area. It is the westernmost of Hertfordshire's districts, being bordered to the west by the Chiltern and Aylesbury Vale districts of Buckinghamshire. History The name Dacorum comes from Latin and it means "of the Dacians" (with a "hundred" implied). The latter word was used mistakenly in the Middle Ages for 'Danes'. This happened because of a legend asserting that certain tribes from Dacia had migrated to Denmark. The hundred of Dacorum was first recorded in 1196, although it has existed since the 9th and 10th centuries, when it lay near the southern boundary of the Danelaw, on the River Lea. In 1086, the Domesday Book records the hundreds of Tring and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bromus Erectus
''Bromus erectus'', commonly known as erect brome, upright brome or meadow brome, is a dense, course, tufted perennial grass. It can grow to . Like many brome grasses the plant is hairy. The specific epithet ''erectus'' is Latin, meaning "erect". The diploid number of the grass is 56. Description ''Bromus erectus'' is a perennial, tufted grass with basal tufts of cespitose leaves that is nonrhizomatous. The culms grow between in height. The internodes are typically glabrous. The flattened cauline leaves have pubescent or glabrous sheaths. The leaf blades are long and wide. The grass lacks auricles and the ligule is blunt but finely serrated, sometimes with hairy edges. The contracted and ellipsoid panicle is usually upright, rather than nodding, measuring long. The lanceolate spikelets are long and have five to twelve flowers. The glume In botany, a glume is a bract (leaf-like structure) below a spikelet in the inflorescence (flower cluster) of grasses (Poaceae) or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brachypodium Sylvaticum
''Brachypodium sylvaticum'', commonly known as false-brome, slender false brome or wood false brome, is a perennial grass native to Europe, Asia and Africa. It has a broad native range stretching from North Africa to Eurasia. The bunchgrass is most commonly found in forests and woodlands, preferring the shaded canopy, but may grow in open areas. It prefers well drained neutral and calcerous soils, and avoids wet conditions. Description ''Brachypodium sylvaticum'' is a tall tufted perennial bunchgrass that grows up to about a high. The drooping leaf blade of the plant is dark green, or bright-yellow green, flat and up to 12 mm wide with a fringe of hairs surrounding the edge of the leaf. The leaves do not have auricles. The leaf blade is joined to the hollow culm by the leaf sheath. This hairy sheath is open and surrounds the culm. The culm is pilose (long, soft, hairy), and typically has 4 to 5 nodes. The ligules are blunt, long. The grass has drooping narrow long ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sheep's Fescue
''Festuca ovina'', sheep's fescue or sheep fescue, is a species of grass. It is sometimes confused with hard fescue (''Festuca trachyphylla''). General description It is a perennial plant sometimes found in acidic ground, and in mountain pasture, throughout Europe (with the exception of some Mediterranean areas) and eastwards across much of Asia; it has also been introduced to North America. It is one of the defining species of the British NVC community CG2, i.e. ''Festuca ovina'' – ''Avenula pratensis'' grassland, one of the calcicolous grassland communities. However, the species has a wide ecological tolerance in the UK, occurring on both basic and acid soils, as well as old mining sites and spoil heaps that are contaminated with heavy metals. Sheep's fescue is a densely tufted perennial grass. Its greyish-green leaves are short and bristle-like. The panicles are both slightly feathery and a bit one-sided. It flowers from May until June, and is wind-pollinated. It has no ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neottia Ovata
''Neottia ovata'' (formerly ''Listera ovata''), the common twayblade or eggleaf twayblade, is a terrestrial orchid widespread across much of Europe and Asia Description The flowering stems are typically tall, occasionally up to . There are two large opposite basal leaves, long. A variable number of flowers is borne on the stems, usually more than 15 but less than 100. The flowers are small and yellowish-green in colour. The sepals and the two side petals form a fairly open hood, 5–6 mm (0.2 in) long; the labellum or lip (the central petal) is long and is divided at the end into two lobes. Due to its slender profile, small flowers and green colour this species can be hard to spot. Distribution and habitat Found across much of Europe including the British Isles, as well as Siberia, Central Asia, Southwest Asia and the Himalayas. It has been introduced into Ontario, Canada, where it has been called the eggleaf twayblade. (as ''Listera ovata'') ''Neottia ovata'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dactylorhiza Fuchsii
''Dactylorhiza fuchsii'', the common spotted orchid, is a species of flowering plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae. ''Dactylorhiza fuchsii'' is one of Europe's commonest wild orchids. It is widespread across much of Europe, with the range extending eastward into Siberia, Mongolia and Xinjiang. The species is also reportedly naturalised in the Canadian Province of Ontario. ''Dactylorhiza fuchsii'' is a herbaceous perennial plant ranging from in height. The inflorescence is a dense-flowered spike, produced in June–August, that is at first conical then cylindrical. The flower colour can vary from white to pale purple with purple spots, a symmetrical pattern of dark purple loops or dots and dashes. The lip has three lobes. The bracts are usually shorter than the flower. The lip is smaller than that of the very similar ''Dactylorhiza maculata'' and has three deeper cuts. The middle lobe is more than half as large as a lateral lobe. Some colonies are highly perfumed, attractive t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melanargia Galathea
''Melanargia galathea'', the marbled white, is a medium-sized butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. Despite its common name and appearance, this butterfly is one of the "browns", of the subfamily Satyrinae. This species can be found across most of Europe, southern Russia, Asia Minor and Iran. It is found in forest clearings and edges, meadows and steppe where it occurs up to above sea level. The caterpillars feed on various grasses. Subspecies Subspecies include:"''Melanargia'' Meigen, 1828" at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms'' *''Melanargia galathea galathea'' Europe, southern Urals *''Melanargia galathea donsa'' Fruhstorfer, 1916 Caucasus *''Melanargia galathea lucasi'' (Rambur, 1858) North Africa * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
