Lye Valley is a biological

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

in Headington, a suburb of

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

. It is part of the Lye Valley Local Nature Reserve, which is owned and managed by

Oxford City Council Oxford City Council is the local authority for the city of Oxford in Oxfordshire, England. Oxford has had a council since medieval times, which has been reformed on numerous occasions. Since 1974, Oxford has been a non-metropolitan district, wi ...

. The site contains a range of habitats including spring-fed lowland fen, dominated by rushes and sedges, a variety of ponds, and wet woodland with small representations of lowland

calcareous grassland Calcareous grassland (or alkaline grassland) is an ecosystem associated with thin basic soil, such as that on chalk and limestone downland. There are large areas of calcareous grassland in northwestern Europe, particularly areas of southern Engla ...

, wood pasture and parkland. Lye Valley has one of the best examples in the country of a

calcareous Calcareous () is an adjective meaning "mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate", in other words, containing lime (mineral), lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of Science, scientific disciplines. In zoology ''Calcare ...

valley fen, a nationally rare habitat. The plant and animal species of the Lye Valley fen are thought to have lived there since they colonised the spring areas after the retreat of the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...

between eight and ten thousand years ago. The site has been studied by botanists since the 17th century and attracted particular interest in the Victorian era. More than 300 species of

vascular plants Vascular plants (), also called tracheophytes (, ) or collectively tracheophyta (; ), are plants that have lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They also have a specialized non-lignified tissue ( ...

have been recorded in the area, though some of them have not been found in recent years. Rare plants include grass-of-Parnassus and marsh helleborine orchid, which are on the Red List of Threatened Species compiled by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

). Bird species found in the valley include reed warbler, reed bunting, water rail and snipe.

References

External links

Friends of Lye Valley website

Oxford Conservation volunteers: Lye Valley page
{{Local Nature Reserves in Oxfordshire Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Oxfordshire Local nature reserves in Oxfordshire