Totternhoe Chalk Quarry

Totternhoe Chalk Quarry
Site of Special Scientific Interest
LocationBedfordshire
Grid referenceSP986225
InterestBiological
Area13.4 hectares
Notification1990
Location mapMagic Map

Totternhoe Chalk Quarry is a 13.4-hectare (33-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Totternhoe in Bedfordshire.[1][2] Part of it lies in Totternhoe nature reserve, which is managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.[3] The site is part of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.[4]

The site is a disused medieval quarry [5] for Totternhoe stone, a durable chalk which was used for buildings including Westminster Abbey. The steeply sloping spoil heaps have developed into grasslands which have a wide variety of flowers, including orchids.[6] Grass chalkland is a habitat under threat, and the site has a number of rare plant species, including great pignut. It also has butterflies such as the chalkhill blue and the nationally rare Duke of Burgundy.[1]

There is access from a footpath between Sewell Cutting and Totternhoe and from Totternhoe Knolls, which is also part of Totternhoe nature reserve.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Totternhoe Chalk Quarry.

References

  1. ^ a b "Totternhoe Chalk Quarry citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  2. ^ "Map of Totternhoe Chalk Quarry". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  3. ^ Trust noticeboard at the entrance to Totternhoe nature reserve near the National Trust car park
  4. ^ Langslow, Derek. The Chilterns. English Nature. p. 39.
  5. ^ 1446: Common Plea Rolls; http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no740/bCP40no740dorses/IMG_1965.htm, county margin Bed, second entry; plaintiffs: Wm Halle & John Heyworth, defendant John Prudde; "quaryour"
  6. ^ "Totternhoe". Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. Retrieved 9 September 2015.

51°53′31″N 0°34′04″W / 51.891883°N 0.567876°W / 51.891883; -0.567876