Bursdon Moor is a Site of Special Scientific Interest [1] [2] in Devon, England. It is located 4km northeast of Welcombe. This site is protected because of the dry heath and wet heath present here, including peatland.
Bursdon Moor is a Site of Special Scientific Interest [1] [2] in Devon, England. It is located 4km northeast of Welcombe. This site is protected because of the dry heath and wet heath present here, including peatland.
Dominant plants in the dry heath include heather, cross-leaved heath and western gorse. Other herbaceous plant species include petty whin, saw-wort, heath spotted-orchid, devil's-bit scabious, wood sage, cat's ear and betony. Moss species include Sphagnum compactum , Sphagnum tenellum and Leucobryum glaucum. Lichen species include Cladonia impexa and Cladonia pyxidata and the liverwort Lophozia ventricosa (genus Lophozia ) has been recorded here. [1]
In the peat soils of the wet heath, plants include bog asphodel and bog violet. Moss species include Sphagnum papillosum and Sphagnum cuspidatum . [1]
There is also an area of acidic marshy grassland where plant species include bogbean, bog pondweed and water horsetail. [1]
Butterflies recorded in this protected area include marsh fritillary, small pearl-bordered fritillary, marbled white and the green hairstreak. Other insect species include scarce cranefly, Limnophila pulchella (genus Limnophila ) and leaf beetle. [1]
Reptile species include viviparous lizard and adder. Bird species include curlew, meadow pipit, skylark, and grasshopper warbler. [1]
This protected area is positioned on shale rocks of the Crackington formation [3] from the Culm measures of Carboniferous age. [1]
There are Bronze age burial mounds within Bursdon Moor SSSI. [4]