Oakleigh Park Rail Cutting is an
Site of Local Importance for Nature Conservation
Site most often refers to:
* Archaeological site
* Campsite, a place used for overnight stay in an outdoor area
* Construction site
* Location, a point or an area on the Earth's surface or elsewhere
* Website, a set of related web pages, typical ...
in
Oakleigh Park
Oakleigh Park is a loosely defined district in the north of the London Borough of Barnet. It adjoins Whetstone, and is often regarded as part of either that district or of East Barnet, although the East Coast Main Line forms a border with the l ...
in the
London Borough of Barnet
The London Borough of Barnet () is a suburban London boroughs, London borough in north London, England. Forming part of Outer London, the borough was formed in 1965 from parts of the ceremonial counties of Middlesex and Hertfordshire. It is the ...
. It is on the
East Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line (ECML) is a electrified railway between its northern terminus at and southern terminus at . The key towns and cities of , , , , and are on the line. The line is a key transport artery on the eastern side of Grea ...
between
Oakleigh Park railway station
Oakleigh Park railway station serves Oakleigh Park in the London Borough of Barnet, north London, England. It is down the line from , in Travelcard Zone 4. The station is managed and served by Thameslink and Great Northern, Great Northern.
Oy ...
and
Barnet Tunnel to its south.
The site is a wide railway cutting with a diversity of habitat which provides a good example of railway ecology. The eastern bank has extensive brambles with clumps of blackthorn and hawthorn, and herbs such as
rosebay willowherb
''Chamaenerion angustifolium'' is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant in the willowherb family, Onagraceae. It is known in North America as fireweed and in Britain and Ireland as rosebay willowherb. It is also known by the Synonym (taxonomy), ...
and
Michaelmas daisy
''Aster'' is a genus of perennial flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Its circumscription has been narrowed, and it now encompasses around 170 species, all but one of which are restricted to Eurasia; many species formerly in ''Aster'' are ...
. The western bank is more natural with mature woodland of oak, ash, sycamore, and silver birch near the tunnel. The site is a useful habitat for birds such as goldfinch, wrens and dunnocks.
[
The cutting can be viewed from a footbridge between Alverstone Avenue and Oakleigh Park South.
]
See also
*Nature reserves in Barnet
The London Borough of Barnet, on the northern outskirts of London, is mainly residential, but it has large areas of green space and farmland. The spread of suburban development into the countryside was halted by the designation of a statutory Me ...
References
External links
Nature reserves in the London Borough of Barnet
Railway cuttings in the United Kingdom
Oakleigh Park
{{England-rail-transport-stub