Sylvia's Meadow nature reserve

Habitat type: Grassland Size of Reserve: 5ha (12 acres) OS Map No. 108 Grid reference: SX 413 707 from public footpath in south east corner of reserve Time to visit: June on Open Days
Cornwall Wildlife Trust encourages the use of environmentally friendly forms of transport wherever possible. Click on the locator map above to go to the National Cycle Network website and view an Ordnance Survey map of this reserve highlighting nearby cycle routes.

Directions:

From the A390 at St Anne's Chapel take signposted turning to Donkey Park. Park in the Tamar Valley Donkey Park car park and proceed to ticket office. Donkey Park staff will direct you to reserve entrance.

Access:

From Easter until 30th September Sylvia's Meadow is open daily from 10am until 5pm. From October until Easter please contact the Reserve Officer on 07866 430086 to check opening times.

Classification

Description:

Unimproved herb-rich pasture is a very rare sight in the Cornish countryside and this is one of the most important meadows for nature conservation in Cornwall. It is necessary to graze the meadow to prevent the more interesting and rare plants from being overwhelmed by coarse grasses and scrub.

Characteristic wildlife of this reserve:

The lesser butterfly orchid can grow from 8-24 inches tall. The flower's appearance is very striking, with two large oval leaves at the base and smaller, pointed leaves higher up the stem and a number of large greenish-white flowers. This plant is similar to the greater butterfly orchid, but the two can be told apart by looking into the throat of the flower: in the lesser, the throat is narrow and closed and the two pollen clumps lie parallel close together, in the greater the throat is broad and the pollinia further apart at the base than the tips.

The heath spotted orchid has narrow leaves marked with small purple circles and a flower of white to pale purple edged with darker mauve. Its lower lip is large and round. The flower appears in June.

Other information:

The reserve was named after the previous owner's daughter.

The field was probably used as pasture or crops in medieval times, although as part of Hingston Down heathland, it survived the plough during the Second World War because a military camp was sited on it.

On the reserve are found a leat, which ran to Drakewalls tin mine to the east, and two adit gullies, likely to be from the Hingston Down Mine.

Purchased in 1992 with a grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund.

Cornwall Wildlife Trust Nature Reserves

List of reserves ... Armstrong Woods Bakers Pit Beales Meadow Bissoe Valley Bosvenning Common Cabilla and Redrice Woods Caer Brân Carn Moor Chûn Downs Churchtown Farm Chyverton Devichoys Wood Downhill Meadow Fal-Ruan Estuary Five Acres Fox Corner Greena Moor Halbullock Hawkes Wood Helman Tor Kemyel Crease Kennall Vale Lanvean Bottoms Loggan's Moor Loveny Lower Lewdon Luckett Maer Lake Nansmellyn Marsh North Predannack Downs Park Hoskyn Pendarves Wood Penlee Battery Phillips's Point Priddacombe Downs Prideaux Wood Quoit Heathland Redlake Cottage Meadows Ropehaven Cliffs Rosenannon Downs St Erth Pits St George's Island Swanvale Sylvia's Meadow Tamar Estuary Tincombe Trebarwith Tresayes Tywardreath Marsh Upton Meadow Upton Towans Ventongimps Moor Welcombe & Marsland Windmill Farm

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