Tag: Woodland

1 Current status
1.1 National

1.1.1 Urban trees can be defined as those that occur as individuals or small groups rather than in woodlands. Sites include roadsides and verges, parks, cemeteries and private gardens.

1.1.2 No national information is available on numbers, species or distribution. Trees in Towns” 1994 gives representation data status, species and quality.

1.1.3 Trees have important non-wildlife functions in the urban context, principally in softening and ‘greening’ landscapes, screening undesirable views, reducing noise pollution and mitigating the effects of aerial pollution, especially from vehicle emissions. They contribute hugely to people’s perceptions about their quality of life.

1.1.4 Their contribution to biodiversity is to a large extent dependent upon their context. Suburban areas with large numbers of scattered trees in proximity to shrubs and bushes, large gardens or parkland are especially valuable, particularly to mobile animals. Such areas provide important nest
and feeding sites for birds and feeding and roost sites for bats. Native species are of greatest importance since they usually support a larger diversity of invertebrates.

1.1.5 Ancient trees are often of great cultural and historical significance and can not be replaced.

1.2 Local

1.2.1 None of the local authorities has a complete database of its urban tree stock. However, Liverpool has an estimated 12,300 park and street trees and 2550 privately-owned trees are covered by Tree Preservation Orders.

1.2.2 The variety of species is very large and includes a number of unusual exotics. Most urban trees are probably not locally native species.

1.2.3 Most major planting schemes were carried out in the latter part of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th. In many areas the stock is therefore evenly aged and declining in condition.

1.2.4 In areas of Southport, Formby and Blundellsands urban trees, particularly in gardens, provide important habitat for Red Squirrels.

1 Current status
1.1 National
Approximately 7% (1.5 million hectares) of Great Britain is covered by conifer
woodland. Ownership is evenly split between Forest Enterprise and the private sector.
Stands are usually single species with some 40% being Sitka Spruce. However mixed
plantations are common at the forest scale and older thinned stands often develop an
under storey of native trees and shrubs particularly at the edges or in glades. Apart
from areas of Caledonian Scots pine forest all conifer woodland in Britain is of
plantation origin, commonly comprising introduced North American conifers such as
spruce, fir and hemlock.
During the 20th Century many coniferous woods have been planted on areas which
had significant biodiversity value as other habitats or ancient semi-natural woodland.
The latter are known as PAWS (plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites). In these
instances restoration to the former habitat is the preferred option.
Many plantation forests are reaching harvestable age. This provides opportunities to
restructure the habitat leading to wildlife diversification. Examples being the creation
and extension of rides and glades and other habitats.
Although mature conifer plantations support fewer birds and mammals than broadleaved
woodlands they do support priority species such as Goshawk, Crossbill, and
Red Squirrel. Others such as Nightjar and Woodlark are associated with the
regenerative phases of conifer woodland development.

1.2 Local
In North West England extensive conifer forests are present in the uplands of north
Cumbria, the Lake District and the Forest of Bowland. Large blocks have been
planted in the lowlands of Cheshire at Delamere, on the mosslands in Lancashire and
Greater Manchester and on the Sefton Coast between Ainsdale and Formby.
The 1979/82 Woodland Census figure for Merseyside as a whole recorded 313ha of
coniferous high forest (currently being updated as part of FC National Woodland
Inventory) the majority being Corsican and Scots pine plantation on the Sefton Coast.
In 2007, an update of the 1996/7 survey of the Sefton Coast woodlands recorded
235ha of pure pine, 35ha of predominantly conifer mixed woodland and 20ha of
predominantly broadleaf mixed woodland.

Conifer plantations form part of the large estates including the Earl of Derby’s estate
in Knowsley. There are numerous conifer and mixed shelterbelts and coverts in the
open mossland landscapes north of the A580. These mossland woods are dominated
by pine species. Pine birch mixtures are typical of former acid peatland landscapes
prior to drainage and agricultural development.
The coastal pine woodlands are an important refuge for one of England’s remaining
populations of Red Squirrel.

1 Current status
1.1 National
Typically, lowland mixed broadleaf woodland is associated with a wide range of
fertile, moist loams and clays. Lowland mixed broadleaf woodland overlaps with
several other woodland types. Mixed broadleaf woodland has a maximum of 10%
conifers in the tree canopy.
On moderately base-poor soils oak and birch predominate in the canopy, with ash,
wych elm and alder present in damper or nutrient-rich areas. On more calcareous
soils, ash predominates with locally frequent wych elm and small-leaved lime.
The UK has an estimated 130,000 – 160,000 ha of ancient semi-natural mixed
broadleaf woodland.
There are five main types of lowland mixed broadleaf woodland as identified by the
National Vegetation Classification. In brief, these are: W8 and W9 Ash woodlands;
W10 and W11 Oak woodlands; W13 Yew woodlands.

1.2 Local
There are no estimates of the total area, status and condition of lowland mixed
broadleaf woodland according to NVC communities. However, areas of woodland
prior to The Mersey Forest commencement give the following area of broadleaf
woodland: Knowsley 573ha; Liverpool 166ha; St Helens 283ha; Sefton 294ha.
From the 1993 Mersey Forest survey, mixed broadleaf woodland is the most common
type in North Merseyside (broadleaf 604 ha; mixed woodland (conifer and broadleaf)
454 ha; conifer 166 ha.) The Sefton Coast Woodland and Scrub Strategy identified
227 ha of conifer woodland.
North Merseyside has at least twelve ancient semi-natural woodlands, although this
figure does need confirmation. Most of the above can be classed as W8-W11
woodlands. Liverpool 3 sites; Knowsley 1 site; St Helens 7 sites; Sefton 1 site.
W10 type woodland is likely to be the most common woodland type. There are no
examples of yew woodlands (W13) in North Merseyside.

1 Current status
1.1 National
Lowland wood pastures and parklands are the products of historic land management
systems, and represent a vegetation structure rather than a typical plant community.
Their structure normally consists of large open grown high forest trees or pollards in a
mix of grassland or other habitats.
Wood pastures and parklands were widespread in lowland England through the
medieval age until the early 19th Century, when many were lost through enclosure.
This decline has continued into the 20th Century. Although regionally important
examples are scattered throughout the country (such as Dunham Park in Cheshire)
there are no reliable statistics on the extent of the resource. The best estimate is of 10-
20,000ha given in the UK Biodiversity Steering group report.
Sites are frequently of historic, cultural and landscape importance and are outstanding
not just nationally but at a European level. This is a Priority Habitat in the UK
Biodiversity Action Plan.
In NVC terms the habitat is most closely associated with W10 & W16 Oak woodland
& W14 & W15 Beech woodlands although other action plan priority habitats may be
present as part of the overall structure.
Four broad types of site with varying origin are included in the UK HAP as follows:

• Those derived from medieval forests and emparkments, wooded commons and
  parks and pastures containing trees.
• Parklands originating in the 19th Century but containing a vestige of older
  trees from a former landscape.
• Neglected and unmanaged wood pasture with veteran trees in a matrix of
  secondary woodland, or scrub.
• Parkland or wood pasture that has been converted to other land uses but where
  surviving veteran trees are of nature conservation interest.

This habitat is important for a number of priority species including invertebrates such
as saproxylic beetles, rare lichens and fungi. Trees also provide roost sites and
foraging areas for bats and hole-nesting birds. The principal tree species found are
Pedunculate Oak, Beech, Ash, Wych Elm, Sweet Chestnut and Lime. Dead wood
both standing and fallen is an essential component of this habitat.

1.2 Local
There are no estimates of the total area, status or condition of wood pasture and
parkland habitats in North Merseyside, and the majority of sites are likely to fall into
the final three classification categories of the UK HAP.
Examples of this habitat type under varying regimes of management from neglected
through to intensive include Halsnead Park and Knowsley Park in Knowsley, Ince
Blundell and Meols Hall in Sefton, Croxteth and Calderstones Parks, Sefton Park,
Speke Hall Liverpool and Bold Heath and Sherdley Park in St Helens. Calderstones
Park contains an important example of a veteran tree, The Allerton Oak.

1 Current status
1.1 National
This habitat covers all woodland and scrub on damp substrates, including carr
woodland around water bodies and in hollows, floodplain woodlands, woodland on
remnant raised bogs and the drier parts of basins and valleys and woods on wet
flushes.
Wet woodlands are found throughout the UK. They occur mainly as small woods or
as localised patches in larger woods; large wet woods are extremely rare. Some
examples are difficult to delimit in the field as they occur as small patches in
depressions and along drainage lines which grade imperceptibly into drier ground.
A crude estimate of the total area of wet woodland is 50,000 – 75,000 ha, of which
25,000 – 50,000 ha is ancient woodland. Many more recent semi-natural wet
woodlands are due to succession from wetland and aquatic habitats.
There are seven types of wet woodland identified in the UK by the National
Vegetation Classification. In brief, these are: W1 and W2 Grey Willow woodlands;
W3 Bay Willow woodlands; W4 Downy Birch woodlands; W5, W6 and W7 Alder
woodlands. Wet woodland is a priority habitat in the UK BAP.

1.2 Local
There are no estimates of the total area, distribution, status and condition of wet
woodland for North Merseyside.
North Merseyside has no example of wet woodland which is of international or
national importance (although more research is needed on the Birkdale Green Beach
Alders – see below). North Merseyside has little wet woodland, yet wet woodland
was a significant habitat prior to drainage of the mosslands.
Wet woodland occurs in each district although the areas are small. Examples include:
Red Brow Wood, St Helens; Mull Wood, Liverpool; alder carr in Ainsdale NNR,
Sefton; Acornfield Plantation, Knowsley. Since 2000, a highly unusual linear alder
woodland has sprung up on old strandlines at the landward edge of Birkdale Green
Beach. Much of this woodland occurs in young dune slack and is therefore a type of
wet woodland.