There are actually two commons at Tooting – Tooting Bec and Tooting Graveney Common. They are all that remains of an area of common land that once stretched as far as Mitcham. Today they form a large open space with important areas of acid grassland and three extensive areas of woodland (Bedford Hill, Streatham Hill and Tooting Graveney Woods). While the main part of the site lies in the London borough of Wandsworth, it also extends into adjacent areas of land within the London Borough of Lambeth, including Woodfield Recreation Ground and Streatham and Clapham High School Grounds. The common serves a huge community in an area of south London particularly lacking in good wildlife sites, and its biodiversity interest is actively promoted through a wide range of public events. There is free public access to most of the site, apart from land within the grounds of Abbotswood Road Playing Fields and Streatham and Clapham High School, which both lie in Lambeth.
Local Wildlife Site
Accessible Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation
Tooting Common
Borough: Lambeth, Wandsworth
Grade: Metropolitan
Access: Free public access (part of site)
Area: 84.82 ha
Description
Wildlife
The woodlands within Tooting Common are dominated by oak, several of which are of veteran age, with a range of other trees including hornbeam, silver birch and ash. There are several impressive avenues of planted trees which are mainly oak and horse chestnut. The common supports an unusual variety of woodland birds for such an urban site, including blackcaps, garden warblers and chiffchaffs. Insects include a good population of stag beetles, butterflies, and moths (including Purple and White-letter hairstreak), and a nationally scarce leaf beetle, Chrysolina oricalcia. Overall, 74 species have been recorded here. The woodlands, as well as the lines of mature trees, support good numbers of bats, including all three species of Pipistrelle, along with Daubenton's, Noctule, Leisler's and Serotine bats. There are also several wetland habitats including a lake, a reedbed and a seasonal pond, which support a good range of plants, dragonflies and other water insects. A fenced wildlife area adds to these habitats. The areas within the London Borough of Lambeth, which are contiguous with the more open common, include lines of mature trees and boundary vegetation containing predominantly broadleaved tree and shrub species, with habitat valuable to foraging and commuting bats, hedgehogs, breeding birds and invertebrates.Facilities
Car parking; fishing; horse riding; playground; outdoor swimming pool; public art
No photo yet available for this site
Feedback
Have a question or a comment for this site, or notice anything missing or out of date? Please contact us.