Totternhoe Chalk Quarry

Totternhoe Chalk Quarry

Site of Special Scientific Interest
Location	Bedfordshire
Grid reference	SP986225
Interest	Biological
Area	13.4 hectares
Notification	1990
Location map	Magic Map

Totternhoe Chalk Quarry is a 13.4-hectare (33-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Totternhoe in Bedfordshire.^[1][2] Part of it lies in Totternhoe nature reserve, which is managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.^[3] The site is part of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.^[4]

The site is a disused medieval quarry ^[5] for Totternhoe stone, a durable chalk which was used for buildings including Westminster Abbey. The steeply sloping spoil heaps have developed into grasslands which have a wide variety of flowers, including orchids.^[6] Grass chalkland is a habitat under threat, and the site has a number of rare plant species, including great pignut. It also has butterflies such as the chalkhill blue and the nationally rare Duke of Burgundy.^[1]

There is access from a footpath between Sewell Cutting and Totternhoe and from Totternhoe Knolls, which is also part of Totternhoe nature reserve.

References

1. "Totternhoe Chalk Quarry citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
2. "Map of Totternhoe Chalk Quarry". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
3. Trust noticeboard at the entrance to Totternhoe nature reserve near the National Trust car park
4. Langslow, Derek. The Chilterns. English Nature. p. 39.
5. 1446: Common Plea Rolls; http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no740/bCP40no740dorses/IMG_1965.htm, county margin Bed, second entry; plaintiffs: Wm Halle & John Heyworth, defendant John Prudde; "quaryour"
6. "Totternhoe". Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. Retrieved 9 September 2015.

51.891883°N 0.567876°W / 51.891883; -0.567876