Brown's Hill Quarry Nature Reserve - Holwell, Leicestershire - Flora and Fauna Information Signs on Waymarking.com

"This is a rare and fragile habitat made up of plants which thrive on the thin calcareous soils covering the quarry floor. This wildflower-rich grassland includes important populations of Bee Orchid and a Common Spotted-orchid. Perforate St. Johns-wort, Vipers Bugloss, Hare's-foot Clover and Meadow Vetchling add to the rich diversity.
The profusion of wildflowers attracts many butterflies, including important populations of Dingy Skipper and Green Hairstreak, as well as a large colony of Common Blue, which feed on the Common Bird’s-foot-trefoil.

The woodland, dominated by Spruce, Larch, Ash and Rowan, is not old enough to have a large plant diversity but it does support Primrose, Wood Avens, Herb Robert and a variety of Ferns.

The underground adits, remnants of quarrying, are used by bats for much of the year, but are especially important as winter hibernation sites. Natterer’s, Daubenton’s, Brown Long-eared and Pipistrelle have all been recorded.
Many birds are seen on the reserve and Green Woodpeckers are often heard.

This Regionally Important Geological Site contains excellent exposures of Lias Group Lower jurassic rocks laid down around 190 million years ago. The ‘middle’ Lias Group ironstone (Marlstone Rock Formation) contains fossil bivalves, belemnites and brachiopods. The ‘belemnite pavement’, at the top of the ironstone, was formed when strong bottom currents in the sea left a concentration of broken and worn belemnites.

Overlying the ironstone are the ‘upper’ Lias Group mudstones (Whitby Mudstone Formation), which yield abundant and exceptionally well-preserved fossils, including bivalves, ammonites, echinoderm and fish remains.

The youngest rocks of the reserve are the limestone-rich boulder clays of the Oadby Till (4-500,000 year old glacial deposits). Please take the opportunity to visit the other two fascinating nature reserves at Holwell North Quarry and Holwell Mineral Line."

SOURCE - info board

Visit Instructions:
Take a photo of yourself (and others) at the waymark and feel free to share any additional information or that is not contained on the sign or your experience generally.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.