Rex Graham nature reserve
Encyclopedia
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
nature reserve
Nature reserve
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...
in the Breckland
Breckland
The Breckland as a landscape region is an unusual natural habitat of England. It comprises the gorse-covered sandy heath that exists in the north of the county of Suffolk and the south of Norfolk. An area of considerable interest for its unusual flora and fauna, it lies to the south east of another...
region of Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, named after Rex Graham, a Suffolk botanist
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
. The site is a disused chalk pit, surrounded by woodland, and is primarily of interest for its population of Military Orchid
Military Orchid
Orchis militaris, the Military Orchid, is a species of orchid native to Europe. It is the type species of the genus Orchis.-Description:...
s, as over 95% of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
population of this species occurs at this site.
Other plants found at the site include mezereon, twayblade, pyramidal orchid
Pyramidal orchid
The Pyramidal Orchid, Anacamptis pyramidalis, is an herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the Genus Anacamptis of the family Orchidaceae...
, ploughman's spikenard(Inula
Inula
Inula is a large genus of about 90 species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, native to Europe, Asia and Africa. The genus is thought by some to be paraphyletic, based on the study of the different phenolic compounds the various species have.They are mostly perennial herbs that vary...
conyza), and Southern adderstongue
Ophioglossum vulgatum
Ophioglossum vulgatum, commonly known as the Southern adderstongue, is a species of the plant genus Ophioglossum. It is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with a scattered distribution in Europe, Asia, northwestern Africa, and eastern North America.This plant grows from a...
.
The site is surrounded by a rabbit- and deer-proof fence in order to protect the orchid populations from damage. A public open day at the site is held every year on Spring Bank Holiday Monday, to coincide with peak flowering of the Military Orchids.
The site was notified as a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
in 1984, and has been designated a Special Area of Conservation
Special Area of Conservation
A Special Area of Conservation is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive , also known as the Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora...
. It is managed by Suffolk Wildlife Trust
Suffolk Wildlife Trust
The Suffolk Wildlife Trust is a wildlife trust covering the county of Suffolk, England.Suffolk Wildlife Trust is the county's leading conservation charity dedicated to all wildlife. Its aim is to create a Living Landscape where wildlife flourishes throughout the countryside, towns and villages...
in conjunction with the Forestry Commission
Forestry Commission
The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for forestry in Great Britain. Its mission is to protect and expand Britain's forests and woodlands and increase their value to society and the environment....
. Management at the site includes the removal of encroaching privet
Privet
Privet was originally the name for the European semi-evergreen shrub Ligustrum vulgare, and later also for the more reliably evergreen Ligustrum ovalifolium , used extensively for privacy hedging. It is often suggested that the name privet is related to private, but the OED states that there is no...
and birch
Birch
Birch is a tree or shrub of the genus Betula , in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. The Betula genus contains 30–60 known taxa...
.
The discovery of a population of Military Orchids at this site occurred in 1955. Prior to this the species had never been recorded in East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
, having previously been recorded only in Southeast England. The population then was at least 500 plants, with over 100 flowering spikes; by 1958 the population had reached 2,854 plants, with about 10% flowering, a population level and flowering proportion that were maintained throughout the 1960s. By 1971 however, only 252 plants were present, due to scrubbing over, as a result of the erection of the protective fence. Scrub clearance and removal of some surrounding trees allowed the population to recover, and subsequent counts include 1,115 plants in 1990 and "too many to count" (Harrap and Harrap 2005) in 2000, when 748 plants were recorded flowering.
Genetic analysis of the orchids at Rex Graham has shown that they are distinct from those at the other two English sites, and represent an independent colonisation from Europe.
A proposed upgrade to the A11 major road, which runs close by, was criticised by Transport 2000
Transport 2000
The Campaign for Better Transport is a UK advocacy group that promotes better bus and rail services and for supportive policies and for less expenditure on road building...
in their 2001 report "Roads to Ruin" http://www.transport2000.org.uk/library/RoadstoRuin/RoadstoRuin.htm, as a potential threat to the site.