The Area

Willesborough

Willesborough

Willesborough is a residential suburb on the eastern side of Ashford, Kent, England.-The area:The South Willesborough Dykes area, on the west bank of the East Stour river, is an area of sheep fields drained by dykes. The area is designated as the South Willesborough Dykes Site of Nature...

 is a suburb of Ashford, Kent

Ashford, Kent

Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...

, UK. The area has schools, post offices, shops and other local resources, it is mainly residential but as Ashford expands there is more and more commercial activity around Willesborough. The Willesborough Dykes form part of the Ashford Green Corridor

Ashford Green Corridor

Ashford Green Corridor is a green space that runs through the town of Ashford in Kent, England. The Green Corridor is made up of parks, recreation grounds and other green spaces alongside the rivers that flow through Ashford....

South Willesborough Dykes

On the west bank of the East Stour river is an area of sheep fields drained by dykes, the area is designated as the South Willesborough Dykes Site of Nature Conservation Interest

Site of Nature Conservation Interest

Site of Nature Conservation Interest is a designation used in many parts of the United Kingdom to protect areas of importance for wildlife and geology at a county scale...

 (SNCI). The dykes continue on the east side of the East Stour river and amongst the residential areas, and a tributary stream (Aylesford Stream

Aylesford Stream

Aylesford Stream is a 5.4 kilometre long tributary of the Great Stour, joining at Pledge’s Mill at the bottom of East Hill in Ashford, Kent, England...

) runs between Newtown and South Willesborough and into the East Stour. The smallest ditches dry up completely in summer.
The 'South Willesborough Dykes' have limited access to the public but are none-the-less important in terms of the geology of the area, being in the river floodplain

Floodplain

A floodplain, or flood plain, is a flat or nearly flat land adjacent a stream or river that stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls and experiences flooding during periods of high discharge...

 and in supporting neutral, wet grassland species. Grazing has influenced the composition of the grassland habitat and much of the area remains as grazing land today.

Similar Sites

There are few other places in East Kent with the same characteristics as the South Willesborough Dykes, other areas of grazing marsh are designated as the Sandwich Bay

Sandwich Bay

Sandwich Bay is a long sweeping inlet of the sea between Ramsgate and Deal, on the east coast of Kent, England. The coastal area consists of sand flats with their associated salt marshes and coastal sand dunes. The Sandwich Flats stretch for about five miles along the coast...

 and Hacklinge marshes SSSI, Ash Level and South Richborough Pasture an SNCI, there are nature reserves at Gazen Salts recreation ground (Sandwich

Sandwich, Kent

Sandwich is a historic town and civil parish on the River Stour in the Non-metropolitan district of Dover, within the ceremonial county of Kent, south-east England. It has a population of 6,800....

) and Monk's Wall nature reserve

Monk's Wall nature reserve

The Monk's Wall nature reserve is located a short distance from the quay in Sandwich, Kent and is ideal for seeing wild duck and other wildlife in a wetland habitat. The reserve was opened by celebrity bird-watcher Bill Oddie in May 2000...

.

Plants

Plants that are unlikely to be recorded anywhere else in Kent are found on the South Willesborough Dykes, these include purple loosestrife(Lythrum salicaria)

Purple loosestrife

Lythrum salicaria is a flowering plant belonging to the family Lythraceae, native to Europe, Asia, northwest Africa, and southeastern Australia. It should not be confused with other plants sharing the name loosestrife that are members of the family Primulaceae...

, lady's smock(Cardamine pratensis)

Cardamine pratensis

Cardamine pratensis , is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae, native throughout most of Europe and Western Asia.-Description:...

, marsh stitchwort(Stellaria palustris), water violet (Hottonia palustris)

Hottonia palustris

Hottonia palustris of the family Primulaceae is an aquatic plant-Description:This plant has a stem reaching up to 80 cm in height. Its basal roots are buried in the underlying mud while other silvery, shiny roots dangle freely in the water...

 and blue water speedwell(Veronica anagallis-aquatica

Veronica anagallis-aquatica

Veronica anagallis-aquatica is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names water speedwell, blue speedwell, and brook pimpernel. Its true native range is not clear, but the plant is present on most continents, and in most places it is probably naturalized...

). One type of moss found in the area is only present at one other site in Kent.

Birds

The area is also important for wintering and breeding birds such as Fieldfare

Fieldfare

The Fieldfare is a member of the thrush family Turdidae. It breeds in woodland and scrub in northern Europe and Asia. It is strongly migratory, with many northern birds moving south during the winter. It is a very rare breeder in Great Britain and Ireland, but winters in large numbers in these...

, Linnet

Linnet

The Linnet is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae.The Linnet derives its scientific name from its fondness for hemp and its English name from its liking for seeds of flax, from which linen is made.- Description :...

, Swallow, Lapwing

Northern Lapwing

The Northern Lapwing , also known as the Peewit, Green Plover or just Lapwing, is a bird in the plover family. It is common through temperate Eurasia....

 (often found together with Golden Plover

Golden Plover

There are three species of wading birds in the plover family called Golden Plover. They are* Eurasian Golden Plover, Pluvialis apricaria* Pacific Golden Plover, Pluvialis fulva* American Golden Plover, Pluvialis dominica...

) and Snipe

Snipe

A snipe is any of about 25 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill and crypsis plumage. The Gallinago snipes have a nearly worldwide distribution, the Lymnocryptes Jack Snipe is restricted to Asia and Europe and the...

).

Ashford Borough Council

Ashford (borough)

Ashford is a local government district and borough in Kent, England. Its council is based in the town of Ashford.The borough was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the borough of Tenterden with Ashford urban district, and the East Ashford, West Ashford and Tenterden Rural Districts...

 have a project to create the Willesborough Dykes Country Park, they have a strategy, with key actions for improving Ashford's open spaces, 'particularly South Willesborough Dykes' by 2007.

Map

The Ashford Green Corridor web site has a very useful map showing 'South Willesborough Dykes' and other green areas within Ashford and the route of part of the Stour Valley Walk

Stour Valley Walk

The Stour Valley Walk is a recreational walking route that follows the River Stour, through the Low Weald and Kent Downs, from its source at Lenham to its estuary at Pegwell Bay....

.