Gordano Valley National Nature Reserve

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Overview

The Gordano Valley NNR, 10 miles to the west of Bristol, offers seclusion, relative remoteness and a wealth of wildlife. The unimproved wet-meadow plant communities include variants of the nationally rare blunt-flowered rush, marsh thistle, soft and sharp flowered rush, marsh bedstraw, purple moor grass, meadow thistle, crested dog’s-tail and common knapweed community types. In total over 130 species of flowering plant have been recorded including three species of orchids, 21 grasses and 14 sedges. The extensive system of rhynes (drainage channels) and field ditches contain three nationally rare species: water parsnip, whorled water milfoil and fen pondweed. Long-eared owls can be spotted during the winter, along with woodcocks. Brown hare, water shrew, harvest mouse and otter are just some of the rare mammals recorded on the NNR. The reserve is also nationally important for its incredibly rich and diverse invertebrate fauna. There are 16 species of dragonflies and damselflies, including the harry dragonfly, variable damselfly and ruddy darter dragonfly, along with 23 recorded species of butterfly, most notably the grizzled skipper and grayling.

Location

Walton-in-Gordano

About the area

Somerset remains rural and unspoiled, and ever popular areas to visit are the limestone and red sandstone Mendip Hills rising to over 1,000 feet, and by complete contrast, to the south and southwest, the flat landscape of the Somerset Levels. Another popular spot, the Quantocks, once the haunt of poets Coleridge and Wordsworth, are noted for their gentle slopes, heather-covered moorland expanses and red deer.