This is a list of the Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) in Humberside (sic), England. In England the body responsible for designating SSSIs is Natural England, which chooses a site because of its fauna, flora, geological or physiographical features. [1] Although the county of Humberside no longer exists, Natural England curiously uses its former borders to mark an Area of Search. [2] As of 2012 [update] , there are 72 sites designated in this Area of Search, of which 51 have been designated due to their biological interest, 17 due to their geological interest, and 4 for both. [3]
Humberside was a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in Northern England from 1 April 1974 until 1 April 1996. It was composed of land from either side of the Humber Estuary, created from portions of East Riding of Yorkshire, West Riding of Yorkshire, and the district of Lindsey, Lincolnshire. The county council's headquarters was County Hall at Beverley, inherited from the East Riding, and its largest settlement and only city was Kingston upon Hull. The county stretched from Wold Newton in its northern tip to a different Wold Newton at its most southern point.
Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, freshwater and marine environments, geology and soils, are protected and improved. It also has a responsibility to help people enjoy, understand and access the natural environment.
Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora. Flora, fauna and other forms of life such as fungi are collectively referred to as biota. Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess Shale fauna". Paleontologists sometimes refer to a sequence of faunal stages, which is a series of rocks all containing similar fossils. The study of animals of a particular region is called faunistics.
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Natural England took over the role of designating and managing SSSIs from English Nature in October 2006 when it was formed from the amalgamation of English Nature, parts of the Countryside Agency and the Rural Development Service. Natural England, like its predecessor, uses the 1974–1996 county system [4] and as such the same approach is followed here. There are four unitary authorities in the Area of Search: Kingston upon Hull and East Riding of Yorkshire cover East Yorkshire, and North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire cover south of the Humber. The SSSI list for Lincolnshire does not include the sites on this list.
English Nature was the United Kingdom government agency that promoted the conservation of wildlife, geology and wild places throughout England between 1990 and 2006. It was a non-departmental public body funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and gave statutory advice, grants and issued licences.
The Countryside Agency was a statutory body set up in England in 1999 with the task of improving the quality of the rural environment and the lives of those living in it. The Agency was formed by merging the Countryside Commission and the Rural Development Commission. Its powers were inherited from those bodies.
The Rural Development Service (RDS) was formerly part of the UK Government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). It ceased to exist on 1 October 2006 following the creation of Natural England.
The data in the table is taken from Natural England in the form of citation sheets for each SSSI, and the County Background Datasheet for Humberside. [5]
For other counties, see List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest by Area of Search.
