Cullaloe
Wildlife Reserve
near Aberdour is on the grounds of what
was once the Burntisland reservoir. Part of the reserve is designated
an SSSI (Special
Site of Scientific Interest) and supports several local and nationally
rare plants.
Within its boundaries Cullaloe
contains a
variety of environments including a small loch, mature woodland, scrub,
open grass areas, and hosts a wide range of woodland birds, wildfowl
and other wildlife. The site is jointly managed by SWT and
Fife Council and there is disabled access.
Access
to the Reserve
Cullaloe is just off the B9157 Aberdour to Kirkcaldy road. From the
Forth Bridge take the A921 Fife coast
road to Aberdour. Take the first exit from the Braefoot Bay roundabout
onto the B9157. Continue north
under the railway bridge and further on for about 2 miles.
The reserve is sign-posted to the
right, and
the entrance is by a small cottage. There is disabled parking at the
top of the drive, and more car
parking spaces near the lower pools at the bottom of the drive.
Warning
rough ground
The reserve all lies to the north of the car
parks and there is a made up path that starts near the disabled parking
and leads along to and past the loch.
There are no other footpaths on the
reserve so
please note that the
ground is in places quite steep and rough. The lower parts of the
reserve (the drained reservoir bed) can
be wet and boggy, so suitable footwear is advised.
PRINT OUT a copy of this Web page
and take it
with you when you visit the reserve.
The Cullaloe reserve comprises several distinct and
diverse
environments, each supporting its own wildlife
and plant communities.
These are the old loch (rich in wildfowl and rare plant life), the
wooded areas of mature woodland trees
to the south and north of the loch (woodland birds and wildlife), the
floor and banks of the drained
reservoir (willow carr), the lower pools (aquatic insects and plants),
several wild rough grassed areas (wild
flowers, butterflies and insects), and the steep slopes along the
boundary to the east of the reserve.
Although the
western side of Cullaloe is bounded by the B9157 road, which can at
times be noisy, one of the major
charms of the reserve is its local surroundings, with farm fields and
mature conifer woodlands across the road
to the west, low hills to the east, open views of the beautiful Fife
countryside to the north and the Pentlands
across the Firth to the south.
The relatively undisturbed and varied surrounding countryside
encourages birds of prey and buzzards
and kestrels are common sights at Cullaloe.
Two rare plants grow at Cullaloe: Water Sedge, and
Mudwort.
Mudwort
grows on
the muddy shores of the loch and to enable this plant to flower and
seed the loch is
partially drained each summer between the months of June and October.
Historical Perspective
One of the geological features of the Cullaloe reserve
is the
steep sided valley of the Dour burn. Until the late 19th century it was
probably a mixture
of scrub, marshy areas and land used for grazing.
In 1876 a dam was built which created a large southern
reservoir and a smaller northern reservoir.
These provided a water source for
Burntisland for more than 100 years but in 1986 the reservoirs were no
longer required. The southern section
of the site was drained and a new spillway built to lower the level of
the northern section. This remains as the loch and the
Cullaloe site has been developed as a wildlife reserve since that time.
Management
Cullaloe is jointly managed by the SWT and Fife Council.
Regular work is done in some areas with the aim of maintaining or
increasing diversity.
All the area of
Cullaloe is accessible but care must be taken not to disturb nesting
birds or trample on any of the areas
that support the rarer plant species. Additional information for
visitors is given on a map of the reserve which is located
on the top of the old dam. As well as the ample car parking space, and
several bench seats for
the use of visitors, there is also a woven wickerwork screen (acting as
a hide) on the southern shore of the
loch.
Why not visit
another of our reserves?
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and click on your choice.
