Westernhope Burn Wood | |
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Location | MAGiC MaP |
Nearest town | Stanhope, County Durham |
Coordinates | 54°43′45″N2°6′6″W / 54.72917°N 2.10167°W |
Area | 11.8 ha (29 acres) |
Established | 1976 |
Governing body | Natural England |
Website | Westernhope Burn Wood SSSI |
Westernhope Burn Wood is a Site of Special Scientific Interest in the Wear Valley district of south-west County Durham, England. It occupies the steeply-incised ravine of the Westernhope Burn, a tributary of the River Wear, which it joins from the south about halfway between the villages of Eastgate and Westgate.
The semi-natural deciduous woodland on the slopes of the ravine area is characteristic of the North Pennines, and this is one of the least disturbed areas of such vegetation in County Durham. Ash, Fraxinus excelsior , and wych elm, Ulmus glabra , are the dominant canopy species; hazel, Corylus avellana , is dominant in the understorey, in which holly, Ilex aquifolium , is also common. Alder, Alnus glutinosa , is the dominant species in wetter areas, next to the burn and in valley-side flushes. The woodland plants on the ground are characteristic of basic soils, and include woodruff, dog's mercury, sanicle, bluebell and giant bellflower. On boulders there is a dense covering of mosses and liverworts. [1]
Part of the woodland is grazed, and here there are common plants of grassland such as ribwort plantain, crested dog’s-tail and creeping buttercup. At the woodland verge there are stands of bracken in places, while elsewhere are areas of acidic grassland with mat grass, heath bedstraw and tormentil; in other areas, where the soil is calcareous, there are glaucous sedge, quaking grass and wild thyme. [1]
On the east side of the valley, the underlying sandstone and limestone is exposed as cliffs; these support a vegetation in which wood sage, Teucrium scorodonia , and foxglove, Digitalis purpurea , are among the commonest species. At the base of the cliffs, there are deposits of tufa, which are covered with bryophytes, especially curled hook-moss, Palustriella commutata , scented liverwort, Conocephalum conicum and Pellia spp . [1]
Pawnee National Grassland is a United States National Grassland located in northeastern Colorado on the Colorado Eastern Plains. The grassland is located in the South Platte River basin in remote northern and extreme northeastern Weld County between Greeley and Sterling. It comprises two parcels totaling 193,060 acres (78,130 ha) largely between State Highway 14 and the Wyoming border. The larger eastern parcel lies adjacent to the borders of both Nebraska and Wyoming. It is administered in conjunction with the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forest from the U.S. Forest Service office in Fort Collins, with a local ranger district office in Greeley.
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Lowland heath is a Biodiversity Action Plan habitat as it is a type of ancient wild landscape. Natural England's Environmental Stewardship scheme describes lowland heath as containing dry heath, wet heath and valley mire communities, usually below 250 metres (820 ft) in altitude, on acidic soils and shallow peat, typically comprising heathers, gorses, fine grasses, wild flowers and lichens in a complex mosaic. Heathers and other dwarf shrubs usually account for at least 25% of the ground cover. By contrast, upland heath, which is above 300 metres (980 ft) in altitude, is called moorland, Dartmoor being an example.
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Waldridge Fell is a Site of Special Scientific Interest located immediately south-west of Chester-le-Street in the northern part of County Durham, England. It is one of the largest areas of lowland heath in County Durham and contains the only lowland valley-mire in the county. The fell is home to a number of plants and insects that are scarce to rare elsewhere in the county.
Witton-le-Wear (SSSI) is a Site of Special Scientific Interest located in the valley of the River Wear, immediately east of the village of Witton-le-Wear in County Durham, England.
Sleightholme Beck Gorge – The Troughs is a Site of Special Scientific Interest in the County Durham district of south-west County Durham, England. The site covers a gorge in the valley of Sleightholme Beck between the hamlet of Sleightholme and the confluence with the River Greta, some 3 km upriver from the village of Bowes.
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