Area: 3.4 hectares.
Description and Reasons for Notification:
A steep sided wooded valley near to the North Cornwall coast some 2 kilometres to the east of Tintagel. The valley has been incised into Upper Devonian slates forming a prominent waterfall at St Nectan’s Kieve.
The site is of particular importance as the locality of one of the internationally rare plant species given special protection under Schedule 8 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981. The damp wooded valley also supports a rich bryophyte flora including the uncommon liverworts Jubula hutchinsiae and Trichocolea tomentella and the mosses Fissidens curnovii and Fissidens osmundoides. Dippers Cinclus cinclus frequently nest amongst the rocks adjacent to the waterfall.
The rare plant and bryophyte species require the retention of a damp shaded habitat hence the adjacent streams and woodland need to be carefully managed to ensure that this environment is maintained.