Ruxley Gravel Pits owe much of their value to the fact that they are relatively undisturbed and untrampled, in spite of their proximity to heavily populated suburbs.
Since 2000, Kent Wildlife Trust and the London Borough of Bromley have been working with volunteer teams to cut back the encroaching scrub and trees to help boost the diversity of life on the site. The future of the site depends largely on the maintenance of the mosaic of habitats present.
Extract from SSSI citation:
"Over 500 species
of vascular plant, 169 species of bird... have been
recorded. There is also a species-rich community of insects with 23 butterfly, 9
dragonfly, and in excess of 500 beetle species. This variety of insects in particular
reflects the structural and floristic diversity of the range of habitats present: wooded
islands and fringes of mature trees, scrub, swamp and fen, and open water"
Several uncommon plants
have been identifed including: bee orchid, common spotted orchid panicled sedge, mares tail, meadow rue, and several species of nationally scarce stone worts (Pointed Stonewort,Common Stonewort).
