Natural England - Cavenham Heath NNR
Cavenham Heath NNR
Cavenham Heath NNR lies on the south side of the River Lark, near Mildenhall.
County: Suffolk
Main habitats: Lowland Heath
Area: 204 Ha
Site map: Nature on the Map.
To download a leaflet describing this reserve, click here 
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Much of the site is typical Breck heathland with dry, acidic sandy soil supporting heather and bracken with patches of sand sedge. However, the river is responsible for a number of damper habitats on the site making the NNR one of the more diverse examples of Breck heath.
There are about 40 ha of dry birch woodland on the reserve, with occasional oak and Scots pine and underlying bramble. On the lower-lying land near the River Lark there is a variety of wetland habitats: open damp meadows, alder/ash/willow scrub woodland, and damp birch woodland rich in invertebrates.
A variety of birds can be seen on the reserve, including woodcock, nightjar, little owl, green woodpecker, tree pipit and wheatear. The hobby can often be seen hunting over the heath in summer, and wetland birds alongside the River Lark include little grebe, gadwall, tufted duck, kingfisher, grey wagtail, reed and sedge warblers.
Over 280 plant species have been recorded, including those needing disturbed sandy soils, such as viper's bugloss, mignonette and dark mullein, and scarcer species like mossy stonecrop and suffocated clover.
The site is managed to maintain the heathland by sheep and rabbit grazing and a former arable field, known as Roper's Heath, has been successfully regenerated to Breck grass heath.
To download a site leaflet describing this NNR, click here.
Location and access
The reserve is one km south of the A1101 (between Bury St Edmunds and Mildenhall) near the village of Icklingham.
By car, access to the reserve is via a minor road from Tuddenham village, two km to the south east. There is a car park on the Tuddenham to Icklingham road, adjacent to the reserve.
The nearest train stations are in Bury St Edmunds (12 km to the south east), Newmarket (15 km to the south west) and Thetford (13 km to the north east).
For details of railway times and bus times, go to the traveline website http://www.travelineeastanglia.co.uk/scripts/webtriplanner.dll/journeys .
The reserve can be accessed from Icklingham on foot and is near the junction of two major trails, the Icknield Way and St Edmund Way.
Facilities
The nearest toilet and refreshment facilities are in local villages.
There are three nature trails through the reserve highlighting the heathland, woodland and wetland areas.
The 2.3 km woodland trail starts at the car park and has a one km easy-access section suitable for wheelchairs. The 3.8 km heathland trail is also accessed via the car park and is reasonably accessible in dry weather. The 1.3 km wetland trail is accessed via the heathland trail or public footpath.