| Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
 Bassett's Cove, within the SSSI | |
  Location within Cornwall Show map of Cornwall Godrevy Head to St Agnes (England) Show map of England | |
| Location | Cornwall |
|---|---|
| Grid reference | SW582423 |
| Coordinates | 50°14′55″N5°19′07″W / 50.2486°N 5.3187°W /50.2486; -5.3187 |
| Interest | Biological/Geological |
| Area | 627.4 hectares (6.3 km2; 2.4 sq mi) |
| Notification | 1951 (1951) |
| Natural England website | |
Godrevy Head to St Agnes is a coastalSite of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in northCornwall, England], noted for both itsbiological andgeological characteristics. A number of rare and scarce plant species can be found on the site, along with many breeding seabirds.
The 627-hectare (1,550-acre) site, notified in 1951,[1] is situated along the north Cornwall coast of theCeltic Sea in theAtlantic Ocean. It starts atGodrevy Head (with the Godrevy Towans) in the west and continues for 20 kilometres (12 mi) to the north east, throughPortreath,Porthtowan and ends just past St Agnes Head, north of the village ofSt Agnes.[2][3]
TheSouth West Coast Path runs through the SSSI and part of the coastline is owned by theNational Trust.[3] Other parts of this coastline is owned by theMinistry of Defence.[4]
Large sections of this site lie within theCornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
The SSSI is predominantly situated onDevoniansandstones andshales, with the area around St Agnes formed from Grampoundgrit.[1]
The site provides a variety of different habitats, includingcliffs,maritimegrassland,maritime heathland,sand dunes andscrubland which are host to numerous plant species and seabird colonies.[1] For its flora the site is also designated aSpecial Area of Conservation.[5]
The whole of this SSSI, as well asCligga Head SSSI, has been designated asGodrevy Head to Cligga PointImportant Plant Area, by the environmental organisationPlantlife, for it flora.[6]
The nationally rare species of shore dock (Rumex rupestris) and wild asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) can be found in the maritime grassland habitats, along with the also nationally rare carrot-broomrape (Orobanche maritima), a parasite of wild carrot (Daucus carota).[1]
Amongst the common plant species of the maritime heathland the nationally rare Cornish eyebright (Euphrasia vigursii), Dorset heath (Erica ciliaris) and hairy greenweed (Genista pilosa) can be found as well as the generally rare pale dog-violet (Viola lactea).[1]
The sand dunes, found around the east of the site at theGodrevy Towans, supports the nationally rare slender bird's-foot trefoil (Lotus angustissimus). Within thecalcareous grassland section of the dunes the rare Portland spurge (Euphorbia portlandica) can be found, as well as a large colony of spotted cat's-ear (Hypochaeris maculata), which are nationally rare.[1]
The site contains 25 species ofbutterfly and 15dragonfly anddamselfly species, which include the nationally scarce varieties ofsilver-studded blue (Plebejus argus) andblue-tailed damselfly (Ischnura pumilio).[1]
Scarlet and gold star coral are present within therocky intertidal shores, rare for the Cornish coast; withgrey seal (Halichoerus grypus) having breeding sites within the inaccessible sea caves. The rest of the cliffs, along with the offshore islands, are an important breeding site for a variety ofseabird species and are home to the largest Cornish breeding colony ofblack-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla), with 1000–5000 birds being recorded in the area.[1][7]
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