Bentley Park Wood

Also within

Warwickshire County

Condition (Natural England)

Habitats

Ancient woodland, Bracken scrub, Fast flowing river and stream

Geology & landscape

Geological Period: Cambrian, Carboniferous · Rock Type: Glacial Till

Landscape processes: Fluvial, Glacial, Volcanic / Igneous

Birds & fish recorded

Birds

Description

Area, 103.43 ha. 255.6 ac. Description This site is a large and important ancient woodland in north Warwickshire. It comprises Bentley Park Wood, sectors of the adjacent Monks Park Wood and a small detached area outwith the main wood known as the birch leys. Bentley Park Wood lies mainly on Carboniferous sandstones, a substantial portion of which is overlain by boulder clay. In Monks Park Wood there are also areas of marl, sandstones and shales of the Coal Measures as well as earlier Cambrian shales with igneous intrusions. The majority of the wood lies on light, strongly acidic soils and is dominated by sessile oak, Quercus petraea. Alongside the deeply incised streams the soils are base rich and support alder Alnus glutinosa. The range of acid sessile oak on the better drained soils and alder, on the wetter soils, found in Bentley Park Wood can be seen in only a limited number of other British Woods including Charnwood Forest, Chaddesley Woods and Wyre Forest. On this site there is an unusual and widespread juxtaposition of sessile oak and alder and there is a wider ecological range of alder woodland than possibly any other wood in Britain. Most of the wood is dominated by sessile oak high forest with downy birch Betula pubescens thinly distributed throughout. The understorey consists of a scatter at holly Ilex aquifolium, rowan Sorbus aucuparia occasional alder buckthorn Frangula alnus and localised patches of hazel Corylus avellana. The ground flora is dominated by bracken Pteridium aquilinum and bramble Rubus fruticosus as well as honeysuckle Lonicera periclymenum, creeping soft grass Holcus mollis and bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta. Parts of the oak wood have been felled and replanted with oak in a matrix of conifers. In these areas there has been considerable regrowth of native trees and shrubs which will facilitate the restoration of broadleaved woodland. Alder occurs along the streams and on flushed sites together with ash Fraxinus excelsior, birch, sessile oak and usually in association with hazel. Here the ground vegetation consists of creeping soft grass, bracken, broad buckler fern Dryopteris dilatata with limited patches of yellow archangel Lamiastrum galeobdolon and species such as wood sorrel Oxalis acetosella and yellow pimpernel Lysimachia nemorum. In the wetter parts sessile oak is less common and tufted hair grass Deschampsia cespitosa, pendulous sedge Carex pendula and wavy bitter cress Cardamine flexuosa form distinct communities. Also along the stream sides are patches of lime Tilia cordata and T. vulgaris and wych elm Ulmus glabra and a damper area dominated by ash. Noteworthy species include lily of the valley Convallaria majalis, large bitter cress Cardamine amara, wood horsetail Equisetum sylvaticum and wood fescue Festuca altissima for which this is the only locality in the county. Small base rich flushes are marked by additional species such as ramsons Allium ursinum, hard shield fern Polystichum aculeatum and dog’s mercury Mercurialis perennis. The wood supports a sizeable bird community and is one of the three localities in the county for breeding redstart.

Species mentioned

Plant communities