Caledon and Tynan ASSI

Caledon and Tynan is a special place because of its parkland and fen habitats. Historic parklands are generally characterised by old, open-grown trees and shrubs which have significant amounts of dead wood. These old open-grown trees provide a very specialist habitat for certain species of invertebrates, lichens and fungi, many of which are rare.

A wide variety of parkland trees and shrubs are present on the site, with significant numbers of open-grown veteran and ancient trees and shrubs.
Oak is the dominant species, with other species such as beech, hawthorn, horse chestnut and crack-willow. There are also some spectacular avenues of trees, including an avenue of ancient sweet chestnut along the canal at Tynan.

The parkland trees and shrubs support a high quality invertebrate fauna. Of particular note are certain species of flies and beetles which are associated with the deadwood on the trees.
Other notable invertebrates include a rare digger wasp which nests in old beetle holes in tree trunks and a barkfly which is found on the lichens covering the trees. In addition, the sprawler moth has also been recorded on the site. This species is associated with mature woodland in old established estates and has only been recorded on a few sites in Northern Ireland.

The parkland trees and shrubs at Caledon and Tynan also support a variety of fungi, such as southern bracket and beefsteak fungus. In addition, the grassland within the parkland also supports rare fungi, such as rooting Bolete and butter waxcap.

The lake at Tynan is surrounded by fen, with swamp and wet woodland. Fens are important wetland habitats that are fast disappearing from our countryside due to land drainage and pollution.

Site Related Documents

Site map (.PDF 2.8Mb), Citation and Views about Management document (.PDF 460Kb) and Colour Leaflet (.PDF 317Kb).