East Ramsdown
An area of heathland north of Christchurch.
Site Description
The site consists of 33 hectares of wet and dry heath, scrub and cleared forestry plantation. It is situated to the north of Christchurch and east of Hurn village, bounded down the eastern side by the A338 and the Avon Causeway to the north and by Forestry Commission plantation to the west and south. A statutory bridleway runs though the reserve coming in from the A338. The Herpetological Conservation Trust (HCT) have done extensive bracken spraying and also created a pond and currently have work in progress on a second pond. There is an area of dense rhododendron on the top ridge.
Ownership
The area west of the bridleway in the northern part is owned and managed by the DWT. The rest of the area is managed by the HCT. Brickfield cottage is a private residence. There is a private lane (Brick Kiln Lane) to the cottage coming off the Avon Causeway just before the bridge over the A338.
Wildlife
Hobbies have nested here in the past and are regularly seen hunting here. The pond created by the HCT is now well established and excellent for dragonflies, damselflies and plant life.
There are a number of small ponds in the heath and raft spiders have been seen in some of them. These are away from any paths and care should be taken whilst exploring so as not to trample plants, especially mosses. In September a Spotted Flycatcher was seen in the woodland area.
