Aylestone Meadows

Aylestone Meadows is an 8.8 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Leicester. It is owned and managed by Leicester City Council.[1][2]

Aylestone Meadows
TypeLocal Nature Reserve
LocationLeicester
OS gridSK 571 015
Area8.8 hectares
Managed byLeicester City Council

It is Leicester's largest nature reserve[3][4] situated on the floodplains of the River Soar and River Biam[5] along with several locks of the Grand Union Canal. It has a high wildlife conservation value, and has trails that are popular venue with hikers,[6] families on outings, dog walkers[7] and cyclists.[8]

A patchwork of flood meadows, woodland and wetlands 1.6 miles from the city centre, these habitats host many rare[9] and common flora and fauna.[10][11]

A medieval packhorse bridge provides evidence of trade and previous settlement. The area frequently floods, resulting in fertile land and good grazing areas, and so a settlement grew from prehistoric times to become the village of Aylestone. The construction of the Packhorse Bridge from local granite enabled transportation of goods across an area prone to flooding and includes several passing areas.[12][13]

Geography

Following the Last Glacial Period, the Bytham River was diverted and the former bed became the Soar Valley.[14] Now canalised through the city centre, the area represents the upstream remnant of the flood plain that once stretched to the River Trent.

In July of 2019, a landscaping project began in the northern section of the park with the primary aim of restoring the flood-relieving marsh that has been lost over time.[15] The scheme is expected to last through 2020.

Neighboring areas include Aylestone and Aylestone Park to the East, Westcotes and the city centre to the North, and Braunstone Park & Rowley Fields to the West. The Grand Union Canal and the former Great Central Railway traverse the park along with one public road, Middleton Lane.

References
  1. "Aylestone Meadows". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. 23 March 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  2. "Map of Aylestone Meadows". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  3. "Meadows have Leicester's 'most extensive' area of wildlife". 7 February 2012.
  4. Leicester (England). City Planning Department (1989). Leicester ecology strategy. Leicester City Council. ISBN 978-0-901675-54-5. (various pages)
  5. "Environment Agency - Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea".
  6. Paul Biggs (1995). Waterway Walks in Leicestershire and Rutland. Sigma Leisure. pp. 67–. ISBN 978-1-85058-442-1.
  7. "Rivers polluted near Aylestone Meadows as old sewage tank fails". Leicester Mercury, July 24, 2014 By Samantha Fisher
  8. "Aylestone Meadows - NatureSpot".
  9. "Aylestone Meadows survey report available now - Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trust".
  10. "Aylestone Meadows - Leicester's Hidden Countryside". 1 September 2009.
  11. http://www.lrwt.org.uk/media/uploads/news/am-publicreport.pdf retrieved 10/10/2014
  12. Aylestone Meadows by R N Hutchinson
  13. Jack Simmons (1974). Leicester Past and Present: Modern city, 1860-1974. Eyre Methuen. ISBN 978-0-413-30890-0.
  14. Gibbard, P. L.; Turner, C.; West, R. G. (2013-03-28). "The Bytham river reconsidered". Quaternary International. Pan-European Correlations in Quaternary Stratigraphy: SEQS 2011, INQUA Congress, Bern. 292: 15–32. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2012.08.2053. ISSN 1040-6182.
  15. "Aylestone Meadows Flood Alleviation Scheme". Leicester City Council.

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