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4). Dowalton Marshes Status: SSSI Access: Permit required Map Reference: 83-NX 405 467 |
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Dowalton Marshes is a mosaic of wetlands, woodland and scrub, formed over a shallow loch which lay in a hollow between 'drumlins', small whale-backed hills left after the last glaciation. The loch was drained during agricultural improvements in the 1860s and revealed a wealth of archaeological finds, including two crannogs or lake dwellings and dug out canoes. Unfortunately, the base of the loch proved too rocky for cultivation and so the land was abandoned. This proved a boon for local wildlife as it has since developed into some of the best open grassland and Willow scrub habitat in the region.
The reserve is particularly notable for its bird fauna. Birch and scrub woodland on the drier part of the site attracts large flocks of Redwing and Fieldfare during Autumn and Winter and surveys have recorded seven species of Warbler and many other small passerines, which have in turn attracted the rare Hen Harrier. Otters are known to frequent the wetland areas and the site still floods during winter attracting large numbers of water birds, including Water Rail, Widgeon, Teal and Whooper Swans. |