Many lists of trees of Great Britain and Ireland have been written. There are a number of issues surrounding the inclusion of a species in such a list. As can be seen from the outline of debate below, there is no 'correct' list of trees of Britain and Ireland.
There are a number of different opinions regarding the validity of some species, notably apomictic microspecies and whether some 'species' may actually be hybrids. In particular, the number and definition of species in the genera Sorbus (rowans, whitebeams etc.), Ulmus (elms) and Salix (willows) are open to debate.
Native species are considered to be species which are today present in the region in question, and have been continuously present in that region since a certain period of time. When applied to Britain and Ireland, three possible definitions of this time constraint are:
The only endemic tree species in Britain and Ireland (that is, that are native only to this region) are some apomictic whitebeams.
Species that were native in the region in prehistory before the last ice age, but not subsequently, are generally regarded as extinct and no longer native.
Many additional species have been imported by humans; the total list of all introduced trees numbers several thousand. A far smaller number of these have become widely naturalised, spreading by their own accord without recourse to further human assistance.
A tree can be defined as a large, perennial, woody plant with secondary branches supported by a primary stem (compare with shrub). There is no set definition regarding minimum size, though most authors cite a tree species as being one which regularly reaches 6 m (20 ft) tall with a single stem. [1] Species like Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) and Purple willow (Salix purpurea), which may reach 6 m but not on a single stem, are not treated as trees. [1]
Listing order follows taxonomic order per Mitchell 1974. [1]
These larger shrubs occasionally reach tree height, but not on a single stem so do not qualify as trees:
An endemic species is a plant only native to a certain area. Outside this area, unless spread naturally it is considered non-native, usually as a result of cultivation. Britain and Ireland have few endemic trees, most being micro-species of Whitebeam. But there are some interesting endemic trees nevertheless.
(Incomplete list)
(Very incomplete list)
The tallest tree in Great Britain (and second-tallest tree in Europe) is a 103-year old Douglas-fir in North Wales, 71 metres tall [7]
UNESCO Biosphere Reserves are environment-protected scientific-research institutions of international status that are created with the intent for conservation in a natural state the most typical natural complexes of biosphere, conducting background ecological monitoring, studying of the surrounding natural environment, its changes under the activity of anthropogenic factors.
The engrailed and small engrailed are moths of the family Geometridae found from the British Isles through central and eastern Europe to the Russian Far East and Kazakhstan. The western Mediterranean and Asia Minor and the Caucasus represent the southern limit of the distribution. In the north, the distribution area ends at the Arctic Circle. It also occurs in North America. Debate exists as to whether they make up one species, or whether E. crepuscularia actually refers only to the small engrailed, with the engrailed proper being separable as E. bistortata.
The grey dagger is a moth of the family Noctuidae.
Peavy Arboretum is an arboretum operated by Oregon State University and located on Arboretum Road, Corvallis, Oregon. It is open to the public daily without charge.
The woodlands of the Iberian Peninsula are distinct ecosystems on the Iberian Peninsula. Although the various regions are each characterized by distinct vegetation, the borders between these regions are not clearly defined, and there are some similarities across the peninsula.
Mediterranean conifer and mixed forests is an ecoregion, in the temperate coniferous forest biome, which occupies the high mountain ranges of North Africa. The term is also a botanically recognized plant association in the African and Mediterranean literature.
The Museo e Arboreto Carlo Siemoni is a museum and historic arboretum located in Badia Prataglia, Poppi, Province of Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy.
Choristoneura rosaceana, the oblique banded leaf roller or rosaceous leaf roller, is a moth of the family Tortricidae. It is native to North America, but has been accidentally introduced into other parts of the world.
The Arboretum La Alfaguara was formerly a tree nursery in the Sierra de la Alfaguara, in Alfacar near Granada in Spain. It contains samples of many of the trees that are scattered throughout the Sierra and the surrounding mountain ranges.
The Iberian conifer forests is a Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub ecoregion in southwestern Europe. It includes the mountain forests of southern and central Spain.