Editing Kennet and Avon Canal (section)

===Ecology===
The canal and its environs are important for wildlife conservation. There are several [[Site of Special Scientific Interest|Sites of Special Scientific Interest]] (SSSI), which exhibit great [[biodiversity]]. Key sites that are home to several rare species include the [[Aldermaston Gravel Pits]],<ref name="aldermasten">{{cite web|title=SSSI citation sheet for Aldermaston Gravel Pits |publisher=[[English Nature]] |format=PDF |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1002776.pdf#search=%22Aldermaston%20Gravel%20Pits%22 |access-date=23 September 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927004447/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1002776.pdf |archive-date=27 September 2007 }}</ref> [[Woolhampton Reed Bed|Woolhampton]],<ref name="woolhampton">{{cite web|title=SSSI citation sheet for Woolhampton Reed Bed |publisher=English Nature |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1000370.pdf |access-date=22 September 2006 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926231355/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1000370.pdf |archive-date=26 September 2007 }}</ref> [[Thatcham Reed Beds]],<ref name="thatcham">{{cite web|title=SSSI citation sheet for Thatcham Reed Beds |publisher=English Nature |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1002762.pdf |access-date=22 September 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927000311/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1002762.pdf |archive-date=27 September 2007 }}</ref><ref name="x129"/> and [[Freeman's Marsh]], [[Hungerford]].<ref name="english-nature.org.uk">{{cite web|url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1001426.pdf |title=SSSI citation sheet for Freeman's Marsh |publisher=[[English Nature]] |year=1986 |access-date=22 September 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926233802/http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1001426.pdf |archive-date=26 September 2007 }}</ref> There are also many non-statutory nature reserves along the canal.<ref name=vile8>{{harvnb |Vile |1991 |p=8}}</ref> More than 100&nbsp;different species of bird have been recorded in surveys over the length of the canal,<ref>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110814162306/http://ww2.reading.gov.uk/documents/ourenvironment/stateoftheenvironment/Chap003_Wildlife.pdf | archive-date= 14 August 2011| url=http://ww2.reading.gov.uk/documents/ourenvironment/stateoftheenvironment/Chap003_Wildlife.pdf | page=7|title=Chapter 3 Wildlife|work=State of the Environment Report|publisher=Reading Borough Council|access-date=15 May 2011}}</ref> of which 38 could be classified as specialist waterway birds, including [[grey heron]], [[reed bunting]] and kingfisher.<ref>{{cite web|title=Wiltshire birding sites |url=http://www.wiltshirebirds.co.uk/where-to-watch/wiltshire-birding-sites/ |publisher=Wiltshire Ornithological Society |access-date=22 May 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120224023124/http://www.wiltshirebirds.co.uk/where-to-watch/wiltshire-birding-sites/ |archive-date=24 February 2012 }}</ref> Fourteen&nbsp;species have been confirmed as breeding including [[sand martin]]s, which nest in drain-pipes in the brick walls of the canal in the centre of Reading.<ref>{{harvnb |Youe |Tate |1998 |pp=68–77}}</ref> [[Wilton Water]] by [[Crofton Locks]] and the Kennet Valley [[gravel pit]]s provide habitats for breeding and wintering waterfowl.<ref>{{cite web|title=129. Thames Basin Heaths|url=http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/file/5535095565844480|website=National CharacterArea profile|publisher=Natural England|access-date=6 October 2017}}</ref> Several species of [[Odonata]] ([[Dragonfly|dragonflies]] and [[Damselfly|damselflies]]) and other invertebrates have also been recorded.<ref name="katrade"/> [[Phragmites australis|Common reed]] is among the plant species growing along the edges of the canal.<ref name=haslam410>{{harvnb |Haslam |1987 |p=410}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Moatlands Sites |url=http://tabcg.webs.com/moatlandssites.htm |publisher=Theale Area Bird Conservation Group |access-date=22 May 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110830104851/http://tabcg.webs.com/moatlandssites.htm |archive-date=30 August 2011 }}</ref> Measures to preserve and create [[European water vole|water vole]] habitat have had considerable impact on the restoration of the canal, and new "vole-friendly" techniques of bank protection have been developed.<ref name="katrade" />