Cothill Fen
| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
 | |
| Location | Oxfordshire |
|---|---|
| Grid reference | SP 462 001[1] |
| Interest | Biological Geological |
| Area | 43.4 hectares (107 acres)[1] |
| Notification | 1993[1] |
| Location map | Magic Map |
Cothill Fen is a 43.3-hectare (107-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north-west of Abingdon-on-Thames in Oxfordshire.[1][2] It is a Special Area of Conservation[3] and parts of it are a Geological Conservation Review site,[4] a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade 1,[5] and a National Nature Reserve.[6] It also includes two areas which are nature reserves managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust, Lashford Lane Fen[7] and Parsonage Moor.[8]
This site has nationally rare calcareous fen and moss-rich mire habitats and a rich invertebrate fauna, including 25 species in the Red Data Book of Invertebrates. More than 330 vascular plants have been recorded. It is a nationally important site geologically because the sampling the peat gives a picture of the vegetation over the early Holocene, between 10,000 and 6,500 years ago.[9][10]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d "Designated Sites View: Cothill Fen". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 31 March 2020.
- ^ "Map of Cothill Fen". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 31 March 2020.
- ^ "Designated Sites View: Cothill Fen". Special Areas of Conservation. Natural England. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
- ^ "Cothill Fen (Quaternary of South Central England)". Geological Conservation Review. Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Archived from the original on August 8, 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
- ^ Ratcliffe, Derek, ed. (1977). A Nature Conservation Review. Vol. 2. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 208. ISBN 0521-21403-3.
- ^ "Designated Sites View: Cothill". National Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
- ^ "Lashford Lane Fen". Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- ^ "Parsonage Moor". Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- ^ "Cothill Fen citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
- ^ Day, S. P. (November 1991). "Post‐glacial vegetational history of the Oxford region". New Phytologist. 119 (3): 445–470. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.1991.tb00045.x.[permanent dead link]
