| Edgbaston Pool | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Edgbaston Pool | |
| Location | Birmingham,England |
| Coordinates | 52°27′17″N1°55′16″W / 52.4548°N 1.9211°W /52.4548; -1.9211 |
| Surface area | 7 hectares (0.070 km2; 0.027 sq mi) |
Edgbaston Pool is aSite of Special Scientific Interest located inEdgbaston,Birmingham,England. It is one of 23 SSSI's in theWest Midlands. The site has two distinct units (areas) within it. The first is water-related and contains the 7 hectares (0.070 km2; 0.027 sq mi) lake and the input channel of theChad Brook as well as some land that is eithermarsh or lake depending on the season. The second, the smaller section iswoodland. In total the site measures 15.93 hectares (0.1593 km2; 0.0615 sq mi).
Also known as Edgbaston Park,[1] the site is based onglacialsands andgravels overlying sandstone from theLate Triassic period. Maps from the 18th century show there used to be two ponds on the site but one has now been naturally filled in and overgrown. On the south side of the main pool, completed in 1790 and whose capacity is 59,100 m3 (77,300 cu yd), is an earthfilldam holding the water in and a smallweir.[2] The site is adjacent toWinterbourne Botanic Garden and Edgbaston Golf Course and close to theUniversity of Birmingham. Access can be gained when visiting Winterbourne Botanic Garden - admission charges apply.
The pool's bird life has been recorded since at least the 1860s[1] and has includedhooded crow,nightingale,nightjar andhawfinch.[1]
The site, in the grounds ofEdgbaston Hall, is part of the Calthorpe Estate,[3] and is included in the leasehold of the Edgbaston Golf Club. The site was managed by a joint committee with members from theBirmingham Natural History Society and the Golf Club,[4] in line with a management plan agreed withNatural England (formerly English Nature). However, in January 2012, theBirmingham Natural History Society announced that, after many years, it was withdrawing from its formal role in the management of the SSSI (whose designation it was instrumental in securing), due to a decline in the number of volunteers able to carry out that role. The site will now be managed by the golf club, under a new 99-year lease, in association withNatural England.[5]
