Conwy RSPB reserve

View over the reserve.

Conwy RSPB reserve is a nature reserve of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds situated on the east side of the Conwy estuary in Conwy county borough, North Wales. It covers 47 hectares (114 acres) and protects a variety of habitats including grassland, scrubland, reedbeds, salt marsh and mudflats. It was created as compensation for the destruction of areas of wildlife habitat during the construction of the A55 road tunnel under the estuary between 1986 and 1991. Waste from dredging was dumped onto the site which was later landscaped to create two large pools and several smaller ones. The reserve opened to the public on 14 April 1995 and facilities for visitors now include a visitor centre, café and three hides. A farmers' market is held on the reserve car park each month.

Over 220 species of bird have been recorded on the reserve, including lapwing, little ringed plover, skylark and reed warbler. Large numbers of ducks and waders are present outside the breeding season, together with water rails and a large roost of starlings. Vagrant birds have included the stilt sandpiper, Terek sandpiper, broad-billed sandpiper and alpine swift.

Other wildlife includes otter, stoat and weasel along with 11 species of dragonfly and damselfly and 22 different butterflies. The reserve has become increasingly well-vegetated and 273 species of plant have been found. Stands of common reed and areas of willow and alder have been planted.

References

David Saunders (2000) Where to watch birds in Wales, 3rd ed., Christopher Helm, London
RSPB (2005) "Celebrating 10 years at RSPB Conwy", Y Barcud: Summer 2005

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to RSPB Conwy.

RSPB reserve guide

Conwy Valley

Towns	Llanrwst Conwy

Other Settlements	Betws-y-Coed Caerhun Dolgarrog Eglwysbach Glan Conwy Henryd Llanbedr-y-cennin Llanddoged Llangelynnin Llanrhychwyn Maenan Rowen Tal-y-bont Tal-y-Cafn Trefriw Tyn-y-groes

Rivers & Streams	Afon Conwy Afon Crafnant Afon Geirionydd Afon Hiraethlyn Afon Machno Afon Lledr Afon Llugwy Afon Gallt y Gwg Nant y Goron Afon Ddu (1) Afon Porth-llwyd Afon Dulyn Afon Ddu (2) Afon Garreg-wen Ffrwd Cerriguniawn Afon Melynllyn Afon Roe Afon Tafolog Afon Gyffin

Lakes	Llyn Crafnant Llyn Elsi Llyn Geirionydd Llyn y Parc

Waterfalls	Conwy Falls Grey Mare's Tail Fairy Falls

Hills & Mountains	Mynydd y Dref Tal y Fan Bwlch-y-Ddeufaen Cefn Cyfarwydd Mynydd Hiraethog

Castles & Forts	Canovium Conwy Castle Gwydir Castle Pen y Gaer

Bridges	Conwy Suspension Bridge Pont Fawr (Llanrwst) Tal-y-Cafn Bridge Waterloo Bridge (Betws-y-coed)

Other Features	Bodnant Garden Conwy RSPB reserve Gwydir Forest Klondyke mill Moel Maelogan Snowdonia National Park Surf Snowdonia

Transport	A470 B5106 Conwy Valley Line

Railway Stations	Betws-y-Coed railway station Dolgarrog railway station Glan Conwy railway station Llanrwst railway station North Llanrwst railway station Tal-y-Cafn railway station

Coordinates: 53°16′37″N 3°48′07″W / 53.277°N 3.802°W / 53.277; -3.802

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 6/23/2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.