King's Wood and Urchin Wood SSSI

King's Wood and Urchin Wood
Site of Special Scientific Interest

Location within Somerset
Area of Search	Avon
Grid reference	ST454645
Coordinates	51°22′37″N 2°47′09″W / 51.37691°N 2.78586°W / 51.37691; -2.78586Coordinates: 51°22′37″N 2°47′09″W / 51.37691°N 2.78586°W / 51.37691; -2.78586
Interest	Biological
Area	128.1 hectares (1.281 km²; 0.495 sq mi)
Notification	1990 (1990)
Natural England website

King's Wood and Urchin Wood SSSI (grid reference ST454645) is a 128.1 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the villages of Cleeve and Congresbury, North Somerset, notified in 1990.

The site has long been renowned for its botanical interest and records date back to the County Flora of 1893. The woodland supports a particularly high diversity of vascular plants, including populations of the nationally rare plant Purple Gromwell (Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum) and the scarce Angular Solomon’s seal (Polygonatum odoratum).^[1]

Large areas of King’s Wood were replanted during the 1960s with beech Fagus sylvatica and a variety of conifer species including Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), Lawson’s cypress (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana) and Norway spruce (Picea abies) . These crop trees have, however, largely been unsuccessful and the replanted areas are now being overtaken by hardwoods.^[1]

King’s Wood supports nationally important populations of the rare and endangered greater horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum) and dormice (Muscardinus avellanarius), and a nationally scarce Chrysomelid beetle (Clytra quadripunctata).^[1]

References

1 2 3 English Nature citation sheet for the site . Retrieved 19 July 2006.

Biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Avon

Ashton Court Avon Gorge Banwell Caves Biddle Street, Yatton Bishop's Hill Wood Blagdon Lake Bodkin Hazel Wood Brockley Hall Stables Brown's Folly Burledge Sidelands and Meadows Burrington Combe Chew Valley Lake Cleaves Wood Cleeve Wood, Hanham Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines Compton Martin Ochre Mine Congrove Field and The Tumps Dolebury Warren Ellenborough Park West Folly Farm Goblin Combe Gordano Valley Harptree Combe Hawkesbury Meadow Hinton Charterhouse Field Horseshoe Bend, Shirehampton Iford Manor King's Wood and Urchin Wood Long Dole Wood and Meadows Lower Woods Max Bog Middle Hope Midger Monkswood Valley Plaster's Green Meadows Purn Hill Puxton Moor Severn Estuary Shiplate Slait St. Catherine's Valley Steep Holm Tickenham, Nailsea and Kenn Moors Uphill Cliff Upton Coombe Walton Common Weston Big Wood Yanal Bog

Neighbouring areas Gloucestershire Somerset Wiltshire

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