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Concept
Chobham Common
Summary
Chobham Common is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Chobham in Surrey. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I and a national nature reserve. It is part of the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area and the Thursley, Ash, Pirbright and Chobham Special Area of Conservation. It contains three scheduled monuments. Most of the site is managed by the Surrey Wildlife Trust as the Chobham Common nature reserve, but the SSSI also includes a small private reserve managed by the Trust, Gracious Pond.
26 species of mammal have been recorded on the site including the nationally rare water vole.
116 species of bird have been recorded. The Common is a nationally important breeding area for European nightjar, woodlark and Dartford warbler.
9 species of reptiles and amphibians have been recorded, including adders and the nationally rare sand lizard.
The Common is nationally important for its invertebrate fauna being the best site in the UK for spiders, hymenoptera (bees wasp and ants) and ladybirds – it is one of the last two sites on the mainland UK for the red barbed ant Formica rufibarbis.
23 species of dragonfly
33 species of butterfly including large colonies of the rare silver studded blue have been recorded.
390 species of vascular plant
A good assemblages of bryophytes, lichens and fungi have been recorded.
Of most note are the marsh club moss (Lycopodiella inundata) and Deptford pink (Dianthus armeria)
A good assemblages of wetland species including sundews (Drosera) and marsh gentian (Gentiana pneumonanthe), and of heathland road verge species.
Peat and tumuli at the site suggest that, like other non-mountainous heaths, Chobham Common was transformed from to mostly shrubs, grass and bog when late paleolithic farmers and wood-gatherers cleared much of the primary woodland that before their arrival cloaked the country. This exposed and degraded the fragile topsoils of the site, creating the conditions favoured by heathland. After the initial clearance the area would have been kept free of trees by grazing and fuel gathering.
Official source
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