Whisby Moor is a small moor

Moorland

Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...

 located close to the A46

A46 road

The A46 is an A road in England. It starts east of Bath, Somerset and ends in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, but it does not form a continuous route. Large portions of the old road have been lost, bypassed, or replaced by motorway development...

 road, west of North Hykeham

North Hykeham

North Hykeham is administratively a town immediately south of Lincoln, in the county of Lincolnshire, England. Geographically it is part of the greater Lincoln urban sprawl, and comprises 4,915 dwellings...

, in North Kesteven

North Kesteven

North Kesteven is a local government district in the East Midlands. Just over north of London, it is east of Nottingham and south of Lincoln. North Kesteven is one of seven districts in Lincolnshire, England and is in the centre of the County...

, Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire

Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...

, 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...

.

Geography

The city of Lincoln

Lincoln, Lincolnshire

Lincoln is a cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England.The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a population of 85,595; the 2001 census gave the entire area of Lincoln a population of 120,779....

 is located two miles to the north-east, just east of Whisby

Whisby

Whisby is a small hamlet located close to the A46 road and Whisby Moor in Lincolnshire, England. It is in the district of North Kesteven.The city of Lincoln is located about three miles from Whisby, although North Hykeham is more convenient. The Nottingham to Lincoln Line passes half a mile to the...

. The Nottingham-Lincoln Line goes through the moor. The south of the Moor, including the Natural World Centre is in the parish of Thorpe on the Hill.

Whisby Nature Park

Former sand and gravel pit

Gravel pit

Gravel pit is the term for an open cast working for extraction of gravel. Gravel pits often lie in river valleys where the water table is high, so they may fill naturally with water to form ponds or lakes. Old, abandoned gravel pits are normally used either as nature reserves, or as amenity areas...

s have been filled and turned into mesotrophic lakes, surrounded by wet willow scrub and now form part of Whisby Nature Park. The nature reserve was established in 1985. The nature park opened in 1989 on either side of the Nottingham to Lincoln railway line

Nottingham to Lincoln Line

The Nottingham to Lincoln Line is a railway line in central England, running from Nottingham north east to Lincoln.The line between Newark and Lincoln is currently only cleared for speeds, Nottinghamshire County Council have paid for a study into running....

.

The nature park has breeds of Shetland cattle

Shetland cattle

Shetland cattle are a small, hardy cattle breed from the Shetland Isles off the north coast of Scotland. Shetland cattle possess their characteristic genetic qualities of thriftiness, productivity and hardiness, through adaptation and survival in one of the United Kingdom's most rigorous environments...

 and is home to a variety of bird species including wigeon, teal, tufted duck, pochard and goldeneye, great crested grebes, mallard and kingfisher, which can be observed from several bird hides. The park is also home to the Hazel Pot Beetle, a leaf beetle

Leaf beetle

Beetles in the family Chrysomelidae are commonly known as leaf beetles. This is a family of over 35,000 species in more than 2,500 genera, one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle families....

 of the Cryptocephalinae

Cryptocephalinae

Cryptocephalinae is a subfamily of the leaf beetles , and belong to the group of case-bearing leaf beetles called the Camptosomata.The Chlamisini and Clytrini were formerly considered subfamilies of their own.-External links:*...

 subfamily. It was released into the park in November 2000, being looked after by the entomologist

Entomology

Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...

 Annette Binding.

A visitor centre has been established as Whisby Natural World Centre and is run on behalf of North Kesteven

North Kesteven

North Kesteven is a local government district in the East Midlands. Just over north of London, it is east of Nottingham and south of Lincoln. North Kesteven is one of seven districts in Lincolnshire, England and is in the centre of the County...

District Council.

External links

• Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust
• Natural World Centre
• Doddington and Whisby Parish Council
• Hazel Pot Beetle in May 2002
• Beetle in November 2000

Audio clips

• Hazel Pot Beetle on the Today programme