Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
Area of Search | Bedfordshire |
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Grid reference | TL42275 |
Interest | Biological |
Area | 26.2 hectares |
Notification | 1989 |
Location map | Magic Map |
Sundon Chalk Quarry is a 26.2 biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Upper Sundon in Bedfordshire. It was notified in 1989 under Section 28 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and the local planning authority is Central Bedfordshire Council. The site is privately owned but it is there is free public access.
The site is part of a large complex of disused chalk quarries, and its varied habitats are fen, lakes, chalk grassland, scrub and woodland. It has one of the most important assemblages of insect species in Bedfordshire, including sixteen species of dragonfly and damselfly and twenty-one of butterfly. There are also breeding amphibians and the largest English colony of the Chiltern gentian Gentianella germanica.
The Chiltern Way passes through the site on a footpath from Church Road.
Coordinates: 51°56′12″N 0°29′22″W / 51.936758°N 0.48935°W