Hawthorn Dene

Hawthorn Dene
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Country	England
Region	North East
District	Easington

Location	NZ435458
- coordinates	GB-ENG 54°48′20″N 1°19′26″W / 54.80556°N 1.32389°W / 54.80556; -1.32389Coordinates: GB-ENG 54°48′20″N 1°19′26″W / 54.80556°N 1.32389°W / 54.80556; -1.32389

Area	64.1 ha (158.4 acres)

Notification	1968
Management	Natural England

Area of Search	County Durham
Interest	Biological

Location of Hawthorn Dene SSSI, Co Durham
Website: Map of site

Hawthorn Dene is a Site of Special Scientific Interest in the Easington district of County Durham, England. The site occupies the incised valley of Hawthorn Burn and extends from just south of the village of Hawthorn eastward as far as the Durham Coast railway line: the area between the railway line and the sea forms part of the Durham Coast SSSI.

Much of the area consists of semi-natural and relatively undisturbed woodland that has developed on magnesian limestone; within Durham, only Castle Eden Dene SSSI has a largest area under this type of vegetation. At the eastern end of the dene, the woodland gives way to magnesian limestone grassland, while at the western end there is an area of tall fen vegetation.

Much of the woodland is dominated by ash, Fraxinus excelsior, but in places wych elm, Ulmus glabra is dominant; such woodland is scarce in Durham. Another notable feature is the occurrence of yew, Taxus baccata, on the lower valley slopes, this being rare in Britain.^[1]

References

↑ "Hawthorn Dene" (PDF). English Nature. 1984. Retrieved 21 July 2010.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest in County Durham

Backstone Bank and Baal Hill Woods Baldersdale Woodlands Bishop Middleham Quarry Bollihope, Pikestone, Eggleston and Woodland Fells Botany Hill Bowes Moor Bowlees and Friar House Meadows Brasside Pond Brignall Banks Burnhope Burn Butterby Oxbow Cassop Vale Castle Eden Dene Causey Bank Mires Charity Land Close House Mine Cornriggs Meadows Cotherstone Moor Crag Gill Crime Rigg and Sherburn Hill Quarries Dabble Bank Derwent Gorge and Horsleyhope Ravine Durham Coast Fairy Holes Cave Far High House Meadows Fishburn Grassland Foster's Hush Frog Wood Bog God's Bridge Grains o' th' Beck Meadows Green Croft and Langley Moor Greenfoot Quarry Hannah's Meadows Hawthorn Dene Hawthorn Quarry Hell Kettles Hesledon Moor East Hesledon Moor West Hexhamshire Moors Hisehope Burn Valley Hulam Fen Hunder Beck Juniper Kilmond Scar Low Redford Meadows Lune Forest Mere Beck Meadows Middle Crossthwaite Middle Side and Stonygill Meadows Middleton Quarry Middridge Quarry Moorhouse and Cross Fell Muggleswick, Stanhope and Edmundbyers Commons and Blanchland Moor Neasham Fen Newton Ketton Meadow Old Moss Lead Vein Park End Wood Pig Hill Pike Whin Bog Pittington Hill Pow Hill Bog Quarrington Hill Grasslands Railway Stell West Raisby Hill Grassland Raisby Hill Quarry Redcar Field Rigg Farm and Stake Hill Meadows Rogerley Quarry Sherburn Hill Shipley and Great Woods Sleightholme Beck Gorge - The Troughs Slit Woods Stony Cut, Cold Hesledon Teesdale Allotments The Bottoms The Carrs Thrislington Plantation Town Kelloe Bank Trimdon Limestone Quarry Tuthill Quarry Upper Teesdale Waldridge Fell West Newlandside Meadows West Park Meadows West Rigg Open Cutting Westernhope Burn Wood Wingate Quarry Witton-le-Wear Yoden Village Quarry

Neighbouring areas Cleveland Northumberland Tyne and Wear

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, May 07, 2014. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.