Castle Hill, Brighton
Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
Location | East Sussex |
---|---|
Grid reference | TQ 372 064[1] |
Interest | Biological |
Area | 114.6 hectares (283 acres)[1] |
Notification | 1986[1] |
Location map | Magic Map |
Castle Hill is a 114.6-hectare (283-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest on the eastern outskirts of Brighton in East Sussex.[1][2] It is a Special Area of Conservation[3] and Nature Conservation Review site.[4] The northern half is a national nature reserve[5]
This is chalk grassland, which is a nationally uncommon habitat. It is rich in flowering plants and there are areas of scrub which are valuable for breeding birds.
There are often early spider orchids in springtime, when the cowslips are still in flower. In June there are burnished green-and-copper leaf beetles nestling in the yellow heads of hawkbit. In a good summer the hillside is dusted pink with fragrant, pyramidal, bee, burnt tip and spotted orchids and sometime our rare endemic early gentian.[5][6]
There is much that is rare and special here including the plants: Nottingham catchfly, dodder and field fleawort; the butterflies: adonis, small and chalkhill blue, clouded yellow and dark green fritillary; the moths: small purple-barred, purple-barred, forester, mother shipton and burnet companion moths; rare bees, including some long thought to be locally extinct and only recently re-discovered; crickets including the wartbiter bush-cricket, dark bush-cricket, coneheads and scarce stripe-winged grasshoppers.[5][6]
References
- ^ a b c d "Designated Sites View: Castle Hill". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
- ^ "Map of Castle Hill". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
- ^ "Designated Sites View: Castle Hill". Special Areas of Conservation. Natural England. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
- ^ Ratcliffe, Derek, ed. (1977). A Nature Conservation Review. Vol. 2. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 116. ISBN 0521 21403 3.
- ^ a b c "Designated Sites View: Castle Hill". National Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
- ^ a b Bangs, Dave (2008). A freedom to roam Guide to the Brighton Downs : from Shoreham to Newhaven and Beeding to Lewes. Brighton: David Bangs. ISBN 978-0-9548638-1-4. OCLC 701098669.
50°50′28″N 0°03′11″W / 50.841°N 0.053°W / 50.841; -0.053
- v
- t
- e
- Arlington Reservoir
- Ashburnham Park
- Ashdown Forest
- Bingletts Wood
- Bream Wood
- Brighton to Newhaven Cliffs
- Burgh Hill Farm Meadow
- Buxted Park
- Castle Hill
- Chailey Common
- Clayton to Offham Escarpment
- Combe Haven
- Dallington Forest
- Darwell Wood
- Ditchling Common
- Dungeness, Romney Marsh and Rye Bay
- Eridge Green
- Eridge Park
- Firle Escarpment
- Folkington Reservoir
- Fore Wood
- Hastings Cliffs to Pett Beach
- Heathfield Park
- Hemingfold Meadow
- Herstmonceux Park
- High Woods
- Kingston Escarpment and Iford Hill
- Leasam Heronry Wood
- Lewes Brooks
- Lewes Downs
- Lullington Heath
- Maplehurst Wood
- Marline Valley Woods
- Milton Gate Marsh
- Offham Marshes
- Paines Cross Meadow
- Park Corner Heath
- Penn's Rocks
- Pevensey Levels
- Plashett Park Wood
- Rock Wood
- Rye Harbour
- Sapperton Meadows
- Seaford to Beachy Head
- St Dunstan's Farm Meadows
- Stockland Farm Meadows
- Weir Wood Reservoir
- Willingdon Down
- Willingford Meadows
- Wilmington Downs
- Asham Quarry
- Blackhorse Quarry
- Brede Pit and Cutting
- Brighton to Newhaven Cliffs
- Dungeness, Romney Marsh and Rye Bay
- Hastingford Cutting
- Hastings Cliffs to Pett Beach
- High Rocks
- Houghton Green Cliff
- Lower Dicker
- Northiam
- River Line
- Rye Harbour
- Scaynes Hill
- Seaford to Beachy Head
- Southerham Grey Pit
- Southerham Machine Bottom Pit
- Southerham Works Pit
- Waldron Cutting
- Winchelsea Cutting