Cors Caron National Nature Reserve

Recommended by

Overview

The Cors Caron NNR, between Tregaron and Pontrhydfendigaid, comprises three raised bogs built up from deep layers of peat that have taken around 12,000 years to form. Running in and around the reserve is the River Teifi, which supports fish, otters and aquatic plants. Autumn heralds the arrival of passage migrants and various species of wildfowl that overwinter on the lakes and the river. These include snipe, greenshank, green and wood sandpiper, whooper swan, wigeon and tufted duck. The reserve is also an important winter feeding site for red kites and hen harriers, and other raptors include buzzard, merlin, sparrowhawk, hobby and goshawk. About 170 birds have been recorded on the damp grasslands of Cors Caron, and more than 40 breed here, including water rail, teal, mallard, snipe, curlew, redstart, cuckoo and meadow pipit. Water-loving plants include bog asphodel, purple loosestrife, bogbean sundew and marsh cinquefoil, while heath spotted orchids bloom in the summer.

Location

Swyddffynnon

About the area

The name ‘Ceredigion’ takes a bit of explanation. The town of Cardigan gives its name to the surrounding bay, but the county now uses the Welsh word for Cardiganshire – Ceredigion, pronounced with a ‘dig’.