Over 179 hectares of Yorkshire’s iconic upland landscape has been recognised for its importance as a haven for rare wildlife and unique habitats, through the extension of Ingleborough National Nature Reserve (NNR).
The expansion brings the total safeguarded area to 1186 hectares, a third of the size of York or equivalent to 2.2 billion Yorkshire Tea bags, making it one of the largest and most wildlife-rich landscapes in northern England.
Ingleborough now becomes part of the King’s Series of National Nature Reserves, established to celebrate His Majesty the King’s Coronation in 2023. It brings together decades of work by Natural England and Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, to tackle the climate crisis, restore degraded habitats, and create a resilient landscape for people and nature.
Ingleborough National Nature Reserve is one of the best places to see a mosaic of nature in action, from moorland fell top, blanket bog and heath to rush pasture, fen and woodland and then to species rich meadows and rivers. They are all found in a single section of valley.
The extension will allow for improved public access to nature with visitors to the reserve benefiting from closer access from Ribblehead railway station on the famous Settle–Carlisle line.
The Yorkshire Dales are home to a third of the UK’s remaining limestone pavements, famous for being tooth-like structures, and Ingleborough has some of the finest and best-preserved examples: although this is a fraction – just 8% – of what was once there. Between 34,000 and 41,000 tonnes of limestone pavement was removed from Ingleborough until it became protected in the 1990s – the equivalent weight of around four Eiffel towers.
Today, the Nature Reserve is a vital lifeline for threatened species, from delicate ferns, mosses and lichens to flowers so rare that they are endemic to Ingleborough, meaning they can be found in this area of the world alone.
Ingleborough is the only place where you can discover the tiny white stars of Yorkshire sandwort. It’s just one of four places in the UK you can see Teesdale violets, and one of two places in Yorkshire where purple saxifrage grows. Ingleborough’s limestone pavements, in their natural, undisturbed state host a rich variety of plant life including rare holly ferns, lichens and mosses, as well as patches of sweet-smelling wild thyme and rock-rose, the main food source of the rare northern brown argus butterfly.
The site supports nationally important wildlife species including curlew, whose evocative call is fading as populations decline across the UK, as well as the black grouse and ring ouzel – both on the red list of threatened birds.
The reserve is also trailing sustainable farming practices with local tenants, including low intensity cattle grazing with native breed cows that mimic natural processes. Additionally, landowners and reserve staff have been experimenting with different grazing approaches that have helped create a patchwork of different habitats, with areas of wildflower-rich grassland mixed with areas of shrub and woodland. These practices will now be extended into the new areas of protected land, to allow further reduction in grazing pressure on the limestone pavement.
Natural England Chair Tony Juniper said:
The breathtaking beauty and rich natural wonders of the Yorkshire Dales are national treasures. Today’s extension to the Ingleborough National Nature Reserve brings more of this wonderful place into active Nature recovery, in the process helping safeguard species found nowhere else in the UK.
Natural England is delighted to be working with such excellent partners who are so passionately committed to halting and reversing wildlife decline, while reconnecting people with the natural world.
Nature Minister Mary Creagh said:
Ingleborough is one of our most dramatic and beautiful landscapes, and I’m delighted this reserve is going to support thriving nature across an even larger area.
This government is committed to turning the tide on nature’s decline after years of neglect. New and expanded National Nature Reserves are improving access to nature and protecting nature-rich habitats, such as the limestone pavements found at Ingleborough.
Rachael Bice, CEO at Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, said:
Working together to create space for nature is vital and further protection for Ingleborough’s stunning landscape follows years of dedicated commitment to bring back more diverse and abundant wildlife to a nature-rich upland limestone landscape.
We’re thrilled the vision and work of our partnership, volunteers, members and supporters has been recognised. This area is one of the most exciting and inviting places to enjoy the wilder side of our rich natural heritage.
A partnership has formed between Natural England’s Ingleborough National Nature Reserve team, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust), The University of Leeds, UBoC, The Woodland Trust, and WWF to further the restoration of wildlife habitats around Ingleborough in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The Wild Ingleborough partnership aims to restore wildlife on a landscape scale — from valley floor to mountain top.
Additional information:
- Areas being added to the Ingleborough NNR extension include:
- Salt Lake Quarry (Yorkshire Wildlife Trust nature reserve)
- Ashes Pasture (Yorkshire Wildlife Trust nature reserve)
- Bellfield’s Pasture (Yorkshire Wildlife Trust nature reserve)
- Selside Shaw (Yorkshire Wildlife Trust nature reserve)
- Ashes Shaw (Yorkshire Wildlife Trust nature reserve)
- Gauber Pasture (Natural England)
- Swarth Moor (Natural England)
- National Nature Reserves (NNRs) were established to protect England’s most important habitats, species, and geology. Ingleborough NNR was first opened in 1993 by the then Prince of Wales.
- The King’s Series of NNRs was launched in 2023 to mark His Majesty the King’s Coronation. This series represents the most significant expansion of England’s National Nature Reserve network in a generation, with 25 new reserves planned by 2028. Ingleborough becomes the 12th such National Nature Reserve to be launched as part of the King’s Series.
- The inclusion of Ingleborough in the Kings Series demonstrates how the Government is delivering on the Environment Act, a key target of which is to halt the decline in our wildlife populations through a legally binding target for species abundance by 2030.
- The Wild Ingleborough partnership aims to undertake landscape-scale restoration of wildlife from the valley floor to the top of the mountain. This will aid nature’s recovery in this part of North Yorkshire by supporting low intensity farming and helping wildlife to be more resilient in the face of the climate emergency and other pressures.
