River Barle

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River Barle

The River Barle runs from the Chains

Chains (geological site)

The Chains is the name given to the north-west plateau of Exmoor, Somerset, England. This plateau lies above the contour line, and includes the source of the River Barle....
on northern Exmoor

Exmoor

Exmoor is a National Parks of England and Wales situated on the Bristol Channel coast of South West England England. The park straddles two counties, with 71% of the park located in Somerset and 29% located in Devon....
, in Somerset

Somerset

Somerset is a Counties of England in South West England. The county town is Taunton, which is in the south of the county. The Ceremonial counties of England of Somerset borders the counties of Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west....
, England

England

River Exe

The River Exe in England source near the village of Simonsbath, on Exmoor in Somerset, near the Bristol Channel coast, but flows more or less directly due south, so that most of its length lies in Devon....
at Exebridge

Exebridge

Exebridge is a village in Devon, England. It lies at the confluence of the River Barle and River Exe rivers. It is located at ....
, Devon

Devon

Devon is a large Counties of England in South West England. The county is also referred to as Devonshire, but that is an entirely unofficial name, rarely used inside of the county but often indicating a shire....
. The river and the Barle Valley

Barle Valley

Barle Valley is a 104.2 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Devon and Somerset, SSSI notification in 1997.The site includes the Somerset Wildlife Trust's Mounsey Wood Nature Reserve and Knaplock and North Barton SSSI notified in 1954....
are both designated as biological Site of Special Scientific Interest.

The river passes under a late medieval six arch stone Landacre Bridge in Withypool

Withypool

Withypool is a small village in Somerset, England, near the centre of Exmoor National Park and close to the border with Devon. The civil parish, known as Withypool and Hawkridge, covers , includes the village of Hawkridge and has a population around 230....
, and the Tarr Steps

Tarr Steps

The Tarr Steps are a prehistoric clapper bridge across the River Barle in the Exmoor, Somerset, England. They are located in a National Nature Reserve about south east of Withypool and north west of Dulverton....
a prehistoric clapper bridge

Clapper bridge

A clapper bridge is an ancient form of bridge found on the moors of Devon and in other upland areas of the United Kingdom including Snowdonia and Anglesey....
possibly dating from 1000 BC. The stone slabs weigh up to 5 tons apiece. According to local legend, they were placed by the devil to win a bet.

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Ecology

The river flows through the Somerset Wildlife Trust

Somerset Wildlife Trust

Somerset Wildlife Trust is a The Wildlife Trusts partnership covering the county of Somerset, England.The trust aims to safeguard the county's wildlife and wild places for this and future generations and manages almost 80 nature reserves....
's Mounsey Wood Nature Reserve and Knaplock and North Barton SSSI notified in 1954. The site is within Exmoor National Park.

The Barle Valley contains extensive tracts of ancient upland Sessile

Sessility (botany)

In botany, sessility is a characteristic of plants whose flowers or leaves grow directly from the Plant stem or peduncle ....
Oak

Oak

The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of about 400 species of trees and shrubs in the genus Quercus , which are listed in the List of Quercus species, and some related genera, notably Lithocarpus....
ancient woodland

Ancient woodland

?Ancient Woodland? is a term used in the United Kingdom to refer specifically to woodland dating back to 1600 or before in England and Wales . Before this, planting of new woodland was uncommon, so a wood present in 1600 was likely to have developed naturally....
which exhibit variations in structure and species composition as a result of difference in past management, geology and topography. The diversity of the site is increased substantially by areas of valley mire, heathland and acid grassland. Eighty five woodland vascular plant species have been recorded including thirty one ancient woodland indicators from a single compartment. The meadows are one of the few sites for Great Burnet

Sanguisorba

Sanguisorba is a genus of 15-20 species of perennial herbs or small shrubs in the family Rosaceae, native to the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere....
(Sanguisorba officinalis) on Exmoor. Springs emerging from the base of sandstone slopes generate nutrient poor acid mires dominated by Sphagnum and Polytrichum moss carpets. The lichen flora is exceptional both for its luxuriance and in the number of rare species. One hundred and sixty five taxa of epiphytic lichens are present containing a remarkably large proportion of ancient woodland indicators giving the Barle a very high index of ecological continuity. The site contains an outstanding assemblage of woodland breeding birds including particularly high densities of Wood Warbler

Wood Warbler

The Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix is a common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe, and just into the extreme west of Asia in the southern Ural Mountains....
(Phylloscopus sibilatrix), Redstart

Common Redstart

The Common Redstart or just Redstart is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the Thrush family , but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher ....
(Phoenicurus phoenicurus) and Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca). The River Barle provides an important habitat for Kingfisher

European Kingfisher

The Common Kingfisher, Alcedo atthis, also known as Eurasian Kingfisher or River Kingfisher, is a small kingfisher with seven subspecies distributed across Eurasia and North Africa....
(Alcedo atthis), Dipper

White-throated Dipper

The White-throated Dipper is an aquatic passerine bird found in Europe and the Middle East, also known as the European Dipper or just Dipper....
(Cinclus cinclus) and Grey Wagtail

Grey Wagtail

The Grey Wagtail is a small perching bird in the wagtail family Motacillidae, which also includes the pipits and longclaws. This species was first described by Marmaduke Tunstall in his 1771 Ornithologia Britannica....
(Motacilla cinerea), while scrub and heath have breeding Stonechat

European Stonechat

The European Stonechat or Common Stonechat is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the Thrush family Turdidae but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, family Muscicapidae....
(Saxicola torquata) and Whinchat

Whinchat

The Whinchat, Saxicola rubetra,is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the Thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae....
(Saxicola rubetra). Twenty species of butterfly have been recorded in the valley including the nationally scarce Marsh Fritillary

Marsh Fritillary

The Marsh Fritillary is a butterfly of the Brush-footed butterfly family.The Marsh Fritillary is in decline in Europe and one of 11 butterflies covered by the United Kingdom Biodiversity Action Plan....
(Eurodryas aurinia) and nationally vulnerable High Brown Fritillary

High Brown Fritillary

The High Brown Fritillary is a butterfly of the Brush-footed butterfly family, native from Europe across mainland Asia to Japan.The adults fly in July/August and lay eggs near to the larval food plants which are species of violets, ....
(Argynnis adippe). Both Roe Deer

Roe Deer

The European Roe Deer is a deer species of Europe, Asia Minor, and Caspian Sea coastal regions. There is a separate species known as the Siberian Roe Deer that is found from the Ural Mountains to as far east as China and Siberia....
(Capreolus capreolus) and Red Deer

Red Deer

The Red Deer is one of the largest deer species. The Red Deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Asia Minor and parts of western and central Asia....
(Cervus elaphus) graze areas of wood pasture. The presence of Otter

Otter

Otters are semi-aquatic fish-eating mammals. The otter Rank Lutrinae forms part of the Family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, polecats, badgers, as well as others....
s (Lutra lutra) on the Barle has been regularly recorded. A colony of Dormice (Muscardinus avellanarius) inhabits at least one of the Hazel

Hazel

The hazels are a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae, though some botanists split the hazels into a separate family Corylaceae.Hazel plants prefer a nice warm, mild,moist climate nothing more nothing less....
coppices.

Recreation

Angling

Salmon

Salmon is the common name for several species of fish of the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the family are called trout,the difference is often attributed to the migratory life of the salmon as compared to the residential behaviour of trout, this holds true for the Atlantic salmon....
and Trout

Trout

Trout are a number of species of freshwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the Salmonidae family. Salmon belong to some of the same genera as trout but, unlike most trout, most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water....
are regularly fished from the Barle.

Walking

For much of the it's route the rivers banks are the path of the Two Moors Way

Two Moors Way

The Two Moors Way is a long-distance path that runs from Ivybridge in South Devon to Lynmouth on the coast of North Devon, crossing parts of both Dartmoor and Exmoor along the way....
footpath.

Kayaking and Canoeing

The upper reaches of the Barle produced favourable rapids which appeal to whitewater kayakers

Whitewater kayaking

Whitewater kayaking is the sport of paddling a kayak on a moving body of water, typically a whitewater river. Whitewater kayaking can range from simple, carefree gently moving water, to demanding, dangerous whitewater....
. The rapids are Graded

International Scale of River Difficulty

The International Scale of River Difficulty is a standardized scale used to rate the safety of a stretch of river, or a single rapid. The grade reflects the technical difficulty and skill level required associated with the section of river....
at 2 (3-) which beginner to intermediate kayakers and canoeists paddle.

River Barle

Ecology

Recreation

Angling

Walking

Kayaking and Canoeing

See also