Corfe Barrows Nature Park comprises around nine natural areas, covering an area of 90 hectares, within the

Borough of Poole Poole Borough Council was the unitary authority responsible for Local government in England, local government in the Poole, Borough of Poole, Dorset, England. It was created on 1 April 1997 following a review by the Local Government Commission fo ...

that are being managed for the benefit of wildlife and people. It was designated as a

nature park A nature park, or sometimes natural park, is a designation for a protected natural area by means of long-term land planning, sustainable resource management and limitation of agricultural and real estate developments. These valuable landscape ...

in June 2016.''Corfe Barrows Nature Park''
at www.dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk. Retrieved 2 Jan 2017.

Description

The nature park includes areas of woodland, heath, meadows and pastures that are linked by footpaths and guided trails. It is home to some of the rarest wildlife in Britain as well as

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

barrows, evidence of its long history of settlement. The eight sites, which are open to the public, are: * Happy Bottom -

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 ...

and part SNCI * Ashington Meadow and Cutting * Barrow Hill * Cogdean Elms - local nature reserve * Rushcombe Bottom -

SSSI 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 ...

and local nature reserve * Diprose Dale * Corfe Hills West -

* Corfe Hills Middle and South.''Welcome to Corfe Barrows: Poole's new nature park''
at www.bournemouthecho.co.uk. Retrieved 2 Jan 2017. The various sites are owned by the

Dorset Wildlife Trust Dorset Wildlife Trust (DWT) is a wildlife trust covering the county of Dorset, United Kingdom. The trust was founded in 1961 as Dorset Naturalists' Trust, to protect and conserve the wildlife and natural habitats of the county. DWT is one of 4 ...

, Erica Trust,

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC) is a British wildlife charity formed in July 2009 by the Herpetological Conservation Trust The Herpetological Conservation Trust (HCT) was a British wildlife charity for the conservation of herpetofauna ...

, Christchurch District Council and East Dorset District Council.

Habitats

Wet grassland,

dry grassland The key characteristic of dry grasslands is that they have low-growing plants, causing the area to be quite open. They also have a mottled structure, which leads to a biome with sunny or semi-shaded areas. On top of that, their soil is relatively ...

, mature

hedge A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced shrubs and sometimes trees, planted and trained to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area, such as between neighbouring properties. Hedges that are used to separate a road from adjoini ...

wet woodland A wet woodland is a type of plant community. It is a biodiversity habitat in the United Kingdom as part of the British National Vegetation Classification system. Wet woodlands occurs on poorly drained or seasonally wet soils. They may occur in riv ...

and

heathland A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a cooler ...

Species

The nature park is home to various species of bird including:

buzzard Buzzard is the common name of several species of birds of prey. ''Buteo'' species * Archer's buzzard (''Buteo archeri'') * Augur buzzard (''Buteo augur'') * Broad-winged hawk (''Buteo platypterus'') * Common buzzard (''Buteo buteo'') * Eastern ...

great spotted woodpecker The great spotted woodpecker (''Dendrocopos major'') is a medium-sized woodpecker with pied black and white plumage and a red patch on the lower belly. Males and young birds also have red markings on the neck or head. This species is found acros ...

, stonechat,

nightjar Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds in the family Caprimulgidae and order Caprimulgiformes, characterised by long wings, short legs, and very short bills. They are sometimes called goatsuckers, due to the ancient folk ta ...

and the rare

Dartford warbler The Dartford warbler (''Curruca undata'') is a typical warbler from the warmer parts of western Europe and northwestern Africa. It is a small warbler with a long thin tail and a thin pointed bill. The adult male has grey-brown upperparts and is d ...

. Other animals include

roe deer The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...

sand lizard The sand lizard (''Lacerta agilis'') is a lacertid lizard distributed across most of Europe from France and across the continent to Lake Baikal in Russia. It does not occur in European Turkey. Its distribution is often patchy. In the sand lizard ...

and various species of

bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...

. Wild flowers include:

ragged robin ''Silene flos-cuculi'' (syn. ''Lychnis flos-cuculi''), commonly called ragged-robin, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the family Caryophyllaceae. This species is native to Europe and Asia, where it is found along roads and in wet meadows and p ...

knapweed ''Centaurea'' () is a genus of over 700 species of herbaceous thistle-like flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Members of the genus are found only north of the equator, mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere; the Middle East and surrounding re ...

ox-eye daisy ''Leucanthemum vulgare'', commonly known as the ox-eye daisy, oxeye daisy, dog daisy, marguerite (french: Marguerite commune, "common marguerite") and other common names, is a widespread flowering plant native to Europe and the temperate regions ...

bird's foot trefoil ''Lotus corniculatus'' is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae, native to grasslands in temperate Eurasia and North Africa. Common names include common bird's-foot trefoil, eggs and bacon, birdsfoot deervetch, and just bird's-foot trefoi ...

and various

heathers ''Heathers'' is a 1989 American black comedy film written by Daniel Waters and directed by Michael Lehmann, in both of their respective film debuts. The film stars Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty, Lisanne Falk, Kim Walker, and ...

Walking and cycling

There are small parking areas on Merley Park Road, but the area is best approached on foot by bus or by bicycle. The terrain is rated as moderately difficult and there is a variety of public rights of way, permissive paths and board walks, most of which are waymarked. Information boards have also been set up at the entry points to the sites. There are cycleways along the Roman Road bridleway and Castleman Trail and the

Stour Valley Way The Stour Valley Way is a long-distance footpath in southern England. From Stourton, Wiltshire, the path travels southeast through Dorset to Hengistbury Head near Christchurch. The path uses public rights of way and permissive paths to foll ...

passes about 500 metres away to the north of the Happy Bottom Nature Reserve.

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1:50,000 map series, Sheet 195.

References

External links