Dacres Wood is a small local nature reserve in Forest Hill in the

London Borough of Lewisham Lewisham () is a London borough in south-east London; it forms part of Inner London. The principal settlement of the borough is Lewisham. The local authority is Lewisham London Borough Council, based in Catford. The Prime Meridian passes throug ...

. It is owned and managed by

Lewisham Lewisham () is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified i ...

Council. The site is a remnant of the former

Croydon Canal The Croydon Canal ran from Croydon, via Forest Hill, to the Grand Surrey Canal at New Cross in south London, England. It opened in 1809 and closed in 1836, the first canal to be abandoned by an Act of Parliament. History Authorised by an Act ...

, which later became the garden of a Victorian house. The site's main conservation interest lies in its ponds and wetlands. In 1990 two ponds were dug and wetland plants introduced. The western part is mainly secondary woodland, which is probably the result of Victorian landscaping. An invertebrate survey in 1996 found the purple hairstreak butterfly, which frequents the tops of oak trees, and has been seen on only three sites in London. The entrance to the site is off Dacres Road at its junction with Silverdale. It is kept locked except when a local group open the reserve on the last Saturday of each month.

References

{{LNRs in Greater London Local nature reserves in Greater London Nature reserves in the London Borough of Lewisham