Muggleswick, Stanhope and Edmundbyers Commons and Blanchland Moor
| Muggleswick, Stanhope and Edmundbyers Commons and Blanchland Moor | |
|---|---|
  Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
| Location | MAGiC MaP |
| Nearest town | Stanhope |
| Coordinates | 54°49′N 2°0′W / 54.817°N 2.000°W |
| Area | 9,118.12 ha (35.2053 sq mi) |
| Established | 1997 |
| Governing body | Natural England |
| Website | Muggleswick, Stanhope and Edmundbyers Commons and Blanchland Moor SSSI |
Muggleswick, Stanhope and Edmundbyers Commons and Blanchland Moor is a Site of Special Scientific Interest in County Durham and Northumberland, England. It consists of two separate areas, the larger—encompassing the upland areas of Muggleswick, Stanhope and Edmundbyers Commons—in the Derwentside and Wear Valley districts of north Durham, the smaller—Blanchland Moor—in the Tynedale district of south-west Northumberland. [1]
The site has one of the most extensive areas of dry
and small areas of open water.Flora and fauna
The dry heath is dominated by heather, Minuartia verna, one of a number of metallophytes that occur on old spoil heaps around disused lead-mines on Stanhope Common.[1]
Ornithology
As with the rest of the
Eurasian golden plover and short-eared owl—are listed in Annex 1 of the European Commission's Birds Directive as requiring special protection; the high density of merlin is particularly noteworthy. Other breeding species include red grouse, Eurasian curlew, common redshank, common snipe and dunlin, which are listed in the United Kingdom's Red Data Book (Birds).[1][2]
References
- ^ a b c "Muggleswick, Stanhope and Edmundbyers Commons and Blanchland Moor : Reasons for SSSI status" (PDF). Natural England. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
- ^ Eaton, M A; A F Brown; D G Noble; A J Musgrove; R Hearn; N J Aebischer; D W Gibbons; A Evans; R D Gregory (2009). "Birds of Conservation Concern 3: the population status of birds in the United Kingdom, Channel Islands and the Isle of Man". British Birds. 102: 296–341.