Berry Head nature Haven
Just over a mile from Brixham Harbour, along winding and ever-ascending roads, is Berry Head Nature Reserve. The area is looked after by the staff and volunteers of the Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust. It boasts an excellent visitor centre and café and is a superb spot for wildlife watching.
Berry Head began life 400 million years ago, when it was situated near the equator; a coral reef in shallow seas. Tectonic plate movement, over an almost unimaginable period of time, brought it to its present location. Today, its 200ft (60m) high cliffs rise from a sea turbulent with winter storms.
The limestone bedrock, thin soils and weather-beaten coastal conditions have created a rare type of vegetation, known as limestone grassland, home to unusual plants, such as white rockrose, autumn squill and orchids. It is conservation-grazed by goats and Soay sheep to keep the grass short.
On its northern flank is a disused limestone quarry; the culmination of 300 years of quarrying, which was in its heyday from the 1930s to the 1950s. Today, these old workings are home to hunting Peregrine falcons and nesting seabirds: the caves are home to Greater Horseshoe bats.
Berry Head is the most southerly breeding colony, or ‘loonery’, of guillemots in the UK, and there are approximately 1,000 on the cliffs most years. They also overwinter on the site and can be seen from October onwards. Other notable birds include fulmars, shags, kittiwakes and the rare Cirl bunting. There is an excellent bird hide near the top of the cliff.
Humans have long been present, with Roman and bronze age artefacts found here. The promontory has played an important role in human protection over centuries. An iron age fort was on the same site as the later Napoleonic defences evident today. The Napoleonic fort protected the naval anchorage at Torbay in the 19th century. The Second World War saw installation of anti-aircraft guns and an observation post, then a nuclear monitoring bunker during the Cold War. Modern-day protection now takes the form of a lighthouse and an aviation beacon.