Slapton Ley
Slapton Ley is a lake on the south coast of Devon, separated from Start Bay and the English Channel by a shingle bar known as Slapton Sands.
Though it is within yards of the open sea, Slapton Ley is a freshwater lake, and is the largest natural freshwater lake in the West Country being a mile and a half long. It has two sections; the Lower Ley and the Higher Ley.[1][2]
The A379 between the Ley and the sea runs along the shingle ridge and was rebuilt after damage by coastal erosion in the early 2000s.[3]
The ley is fed by streams and a small river, The Gara, that flows into the Higher Ley.
Conservation
The site is a National Nature Reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Geological Conservation Review site.[4] The nature reserve covers over 500 acres.[3][2]
The nature reserve is owned by the Whitley Wildlife Conservation Trust and managed by the Field Studies Council.[3][5]
Ecology and wildlife
Slapton Ley’s beaches are affected by erosion but the beaches are formed from sediment; this makes them special because they are non-replaceable: once the sediment is moved it is gone. The beach can only become smaller. This threatens the security of the mainland because when the beaches are gone, mass amounts of water damage would occur on the land. The nature reserve would be destroyed and the site of special scientific interest would be lost.[6]
There is a large population of Cetti's warbler (Cettia cetti) at the site,[3] and bittern (Botaurus stellaris) are resident. Slapton Ley is the only site in the United Kingdom for strapwort (Corrigiola litoralis), a plant identified by Natural England as being at high risk of going extinct by 2020.[7] In May 2015, seed taken from the site and grown at Paignton Zoo was planted at Loe Pool, a similar lake behind a shingle bar on the south coast of Cornwall, where it had not been recorded since 1915.[8][9][10]
Location
- Location map: 50°16’59"N, 3°39’11"W
References
- ↑ "Slapton Ley". Field Studies Council. http://www.field-studies-council.org/centres/slapton/slaptonley.aspx. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Slapton Ley". Devon Birds. http://www.devonbirds.org/birdwatching/places_to_go/slapton_ley. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Slapton Ley - a wildlife wonder". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/outdoors/nature/2004/slapton_ley_2004.shtml. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- ↑ May, V J; Hansom, J D (2003). Coastal Geomorphology of Great Britain - Slapton Sands. Peterborough: JNCC. http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=4174&gcr=1840. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
- ↑ "Devon's National Nature Reserves". Natural England. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/devons-national-nature-reserves/devons-national-nature-reserves#slapton-ley. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- ↑ Morey, C.R. (1976). "The Natuiral History of Slapton Ley Nature Reserve. IX: The Morphology and History of the Lake Basins". Field Studies Journal 4: 353-368. http://fsj.field-studies-council.org/media/348798/vol4.3_108.pdf.
- ↑ "Strapwort". Whiteley Wildlife Conservation Trust. http://www.wwct.org.uk/conservation-research/south-west-uk/slapton/strapwort. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- ↑ Graeme (26 March 2015). "Bid to save extremely rare plant strapwort at Loe Pool Helston by National Trust". West Briton. http://www.westbriton.co.uk/Bid-save-extremely-rare-plant-Loe-Pool-Helston/story-26242211-detail/story.html. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
- ↑ Bennallick, Ian J; French, Colin N; Parslow, Rosemary E (2009). Vascular Plants. In CISFBR Red Data Book for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (2nd ed.). Praze-an-Beeble: Croceago Press. pp. 105-157. ISBN 9781901685015.
- ↑ "Strapwort". Field Studies Council. http://www.slnnr.org.uk/research/strapwort.aspx.
