Corroy Wood

The Bois de Corroy is located in the Condroz of the Entre-Sambre-et-Meuse, south of Philippeville and east of the village of Samart. It is a communal wood occupying a small limestone hill set in an agricultural landscape. This hill is actually a Frasnian reef mound, of which many examples can be found in the Anticlinorium of Philippeville, often exploited for marble production and constituting world-renowned geological curiosities. Already depicted on old topographic maps, the site can be considered an ancient forest, most of which has neither been deforested nor cultivated over the past 250 years. This ancient character is further confirmed by the presence of many indicator plants such as wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa) and daffodil (Narcissus pseudonarcissus). The dominant vegetation is made up of a calcareous oak-hornbeam forest with early purple orchid (Orchis mascula). The small quarry once opened at the base of the southern slope has been reforested with elements of ravine forest, including hart's tongue (Asplenium scolopendrium). A very diverse flora expresses itself along the path, at the edge of the wood, mixing in particular species of dry meadow and mesophilic edge. The faunistic interest remains poorly documented.

Type: Site of Great Biological Interest (SGIB)

La biodiversité en Wallonie