Lady Park Wood NNR
Lady Park Wood NNR is part of a large woodland complex in the Wye Valley.
County: Gloucestershire
Main habitats: Woodland
Area: 45 Ha
Site map: Nature on the Map
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The reserve is an example of unmanaged woodland where much research work has been carried out over the years and it is considered to be one of Britain's most important areas for woodland conservation.
View a map of this reserve: (219kb)
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The main tree species are beech, oak, ash, small- and large-leaved lime, wych elm and birch. Other trees include maple, aspen, cherry, yew, whitebeam, alder and sallow. The most abundant and widespread shrub is hazel, but dogwood, spindle, hawthorn, privet and holly are also present.
Ground plants are dominated by dog's mercury and bramble but plants of interest include wood barley, fingered sedge, wild madder, bird's-nest orchid, toothwort, lily-of-the-valley and herb paris.
Lady Park Wood has a rich breeding bird community which includes all three woodpecker species, redstart, wood warbler, tawny owl, pied flycatcher and treecreeper.
A variety of rare bats have been recorded in the NNR, in particular greater and lesser horseshoe bats which are found here in significant numbers.
The Gloucestershire National Nature Reserves can be found on flickr.com, for photos, news, wildlife information, management and lots more.
Location and access
Lady Park Wood is 3 km north east of Monmouth on the southern bank of the River Wye. The nearest village is Symonds Yat, 1.5 km to the north east, on the river's northern bank.
By car, access to the reserve is from the A40 and A4136.
The nearest train stations are in Lydney and Chepstow, both served by Arriva Trains Wales. There are bus services (many infrequent) from Chepstow to Monmouth and from Lydney to villages near the reserve. For travel details see Transport Direct.
Two major trails pass near the reserve, the Wye Valley Walk and the Wysis Way.
Monmouth is at the end of Route 30 of the Sustrans National Cycle Network.
Please note that access is limited to public rights of way. Other access is by permit only.
Facilities
The nearest toilet and refreshment facilities are in Monmouth and local villages.
