Stanmore Common is an area of former heathland, which is now dominated mainly by birch woodland with more aspen and willow around water sources. Little Common, together with several adjacent ponds, provides additional habitat diversity and supports further locally uncommon species.The site is a Local Nature Reserve. Harrow Healthwalks’ project uses this site – a Walking the Way to Health (WHI) scheme; see link for details.
Local Wildlife Site
Accessible Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation
Stanmore & Little Commons
Borough: Harrow
Grade: Metropolitan
Access: Free public access (all/most of site)
Area: 57.95 ha
Description
Wildlife
The rich plant life of the acid boggy areas includes many regionally rare species, such as bog-mosses, lesser spearwort, marsh pennywort, marsh speedwell, sharp-flowered rush and London's only population of heath spotted-orchid. In drier heathland clearings are heather, heath wood-rush, slender St John's-wort, broad-leaved helleborine and devil's-bit scabious.A wide range of woodland birds can be seen on Stanmore Common, including the three British woodpeckers and declining species such as spotted flycatcher and bullfinch.The insect community includes many nationally rare and scarce species, such as the two-spot wood-borer (a jewel beetle), Platycis minutus (a net-winged beetle), Crossocerus walkeri (a solitary wasp) and the cranefly Ctenophora pectinicornis.Mammals on Stanmore Common include muntjac deer, woodmice, bank and field voles and shrews.Facilities
Information (on signs); car-park.
No photo yet available for this site
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