1.2.1. Landscape and Wildlife
Key Landscape Features and Designations
The region has a dramatic and often contrasting landscape character. It encompasses landscapes as diverse as the high Pennine moors in the west and the lowlands of Holderness or Lincolnshire coast in the east. These varied landscapes have been utilised and shaped by human activity since the earliest occupation of the British Isles, several thousand years ago, resulting in distinctive landscapes, settlement and land - use patterns.
The region contains the highest proportion of land designated for its national landscape value (27%), including National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Beauty and Heritage Coasts. In addition, there are landscapes which are need of substantial rejuvenation, due to problems associated with industrialisation or changes in agriculture including Coalfield areas, Vale of York and the South Yorkshire Community Forest.
The landscape character of the Region is divided into 24 Joint Character Areas defined by the Countryside Agency and English Nature in conjunction with English Heritage, which outlines sub-regional character based on combined landscape, wildlife and natural features. (See Figure 1.11.).
Figure 1.11. Joint Character Areas (Source: English Nature and Countryside Agency)
The following paragraphs give examples of the trends affecting the landscapes of the region:
Grazing pressure on the Pennine moorlands is leading to loss of heather moorland, which is an important landscape feature of the region. (e.g. there has been a 60% increase in stock during the last 40 years in the Yorkshire Dales alone). It is estimated only 50% of the heather moorland area in the Northern Pennines now retains good heather cover, resulting in loss of landscape diversity and character.
Intensification of grassland management has resulted in a loss of flower rich pastures and meadows, resulting in more homogenous green swards. In the Yorkshire Dales for example 36% of flower rich grassland was lost between 1985 and 1991, primarily due to agricultural intensification. Intensification of arable farming has also had consequences for the landscape, including continuing loss of grassland in once traditional pastoral areas. For example chalk grassland, which covered most of the Yorkshire Wolds, is now reduced to only 1.3%, of the area, threatening its traditional appearance.
The effects of drainage and water abstraction for agricultural activities is effecting lowland wetland landscapes and blanket bog in the uplands. For example 94% of raised mire in East Riding has been lost, due to peat abstraction and drainage, resulting in a loss of landscape character.
Under-management of estate and parkland landscapes, which represent important historic artefacts and form important components of the landscape. They are spread throughout the region and range from great landed estates such as Castle Howard to smaller isolated country house parks. They make a considerable contribution to the landscape and heritage of areas of intensive arable farming such as the Yorkshire and Lincolnshire Wolds , Vale of York, Holderness and Humberhead Levels.
Orchards covered over 1,000 ha in North Yorkshire during the 1930`s, including fruit varieties indigenous to the county. These areas had fallen to just 17 ha by 1981 (Orchards in the North, Countryside Commission report). Current action through the Countryside Stewardship scheme has targeted the restoration of orchards, including the Fishlake and Sykehouse area in South Yorkshire which have their own variety of apple (approx. 13 hectares currently being restored).
Neglect of stonewalls is creating more open landscapes and sometimes an impression of dereliction. For example of the estimated 56, 000 kms of stone walls within the region, (50% of England's total) approximately 60% require some active management. Of these, an estimated 5% are being either restored or maintained within environmental schemes.
Neglect and removal of hedgerows is creating larger fields and reducing landscape diversity. For example, there has been an estimated 24% loss of hedgerows between 1984 to 1990 in the region (i.e. 9,100 km) (Data taken from Countryside Agency estimates in 1990). The Institute of Terrestrial Ecology Countryside survey of 1990 referred to neglect, over management and loss of traditional skills like hedge laying as factors contributing to their loss. More recently environmental enhancement schemes like Countryside Stewardship have funded 273.8 km of new hedge planting in the region (FRCA 1998).
There is potential for a substantial increase in tree cover, especially in areas such as the Coalfields, Pennines and North Lincolnshire (which has the lowest density of tree cover within the lowland area of the region). Losses have been severe in places (e.g. 50% loss of ancient woodland in West Yorkshire since 1935), resulting in a loss of landscape character in parts of the region.
The importance of new building design, location and materials, can have a major impact on the landscape of the region. For example, use of traditional local building materials of brick and pantiles in east Yorkshire and Lincolnshire is an important consideration in rural village developments. Similarly, in the villages in the Magnesian limestone areas, demands for small-scale housing developments have in places led to an erosion of vernacular building character with inappropriate use of brick.
The wildlife resource of the region is described in the 'Biodiversity Audit of Yorkshire and The Humber'. In addition, the region contains 35 of the UK Biodiversity Action Plan Priority Habitats. These include:
| Habitats | UK/GB/English Area | Yorkshire Humber | % of UK / GB/Eng |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upland Oak Woodland | 70,000 - 100,000 UK | > 2,946 | > 3% UK |
| Upland mixed ashwoods | 67,500 UK | > 2,338 | > 3.5% UK |
| Wet woodlands | 50,000 - 70,000 UK | > 343 | |
| Lowland wood pasture and parkland | 10,000 - 20,000 UK | ||
| Ancient species rich Hedgerows | 329,000km Eng | 37,400 approx | 11.4% Eng |
| Cereal field margins | 4,821 km Eng | 850 km approx | 18%Eng |
| Neutral grassland | <10,000 unimproved Eng | 10,000 aprox | |
| Upland Hay Meadows | 610 UK /Eng | 96 | 16% UK / Eng |
| Calcareous grassland | 40,000 - 50,000 UK | 9,000 approx | 20%UK |
| Lowland dry acid grassland | 15,000 - 22,000 Eng | 2.5%Eng | |
| Lowland heathland | 31 694 Eng | 1,109 approx | 3.5% Eng |
| Upland heathland | 269,000 Eng approx | 76,000 approx | 28% Eng |
| Purple moor grassland and rush pasture | 56,000 UK 5,400 Eng |
> 11 | 1% Eng |
| Reedbeds | 5,000 UK approx | 400 approx | 8%UK |
| Lowland raised bog | 6,000 UK | 2,121 approx | 35.3% UK |
| Blanket Bog | 1,500,000 UK | 53,000 approx | 3.5%UK |
| Mesotrophic standing waters | 9 sites proposed | ||
| Eutrophic standing waters | 53,200 Eng approx | 4 sites proposed | |
| Chalk rivers | 35 rivers approx | 3 rivers (90km) | |
| Limestone pavement | 2600 GB UK 2,600 GB 2,350 Eng |
1,359 | 52% GB 58% Eng |
| Maritime cliffs and slopes | 4,059 km UK 1,165 km Eng |
121 km | 3% UK 10% Eng |
| Coastal vegetated shingle | 4353 GB | 1 site | <1% GB/UK |
| Coastal saltmarsh | 45,370 GB 31,533 Eng |
648 | 1.4% GB2% |
| Coastal sand dunes | 47,118 GB 9,276 Eng |
141 | 0.3% GB1.5% |
| Mud flats | 270 intertidal UK | 12,111 sand and mud flats | 4.5%UK |
| Saline lagoons | 1,293 GB | 149 | 11.5% GB |
| Fens | 80 sites | ||
| Chalk coast | < 113 Km GB | 17km approx | 15% approx |
Some habitats have special significance in the region because of their extensive nature (mainly in the uplands) or of national priority (mainly in the lowlands and coast). Over 11% of the region is designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest and the majority of these are proposed for international designation.
The uplands of the Pennine and North York Moors contain extensive areas of internationally important upland heathland (28% of England's total) calcareous grassland (20% of the UK`s total), limestone pavement, blanket bog and smaller remnants of ancient woodland and hay meadows. The 76,000 ha of upland heathland lies within five distinct Natural Areas and the 53,000 ha of blanket bog within three main Natural Areas
The moors of the region support a well-developed assemblage of upland breeding birds, including merlin, golden plover, red grouse, dunlin, short-eared owl, hen harrier, curlew, and twite. (Figure 1.12).
Figure 1.12. Important Bird Areas (Source: RSPB)
Despite holding significant areas of upland habitats, the environmental value of much of the land has been severely affected by decades of over-intensive management (e.g. increased sheep grazing, land drainage and fertiliser use). In the North York Moors undergrazing and losses to ploughing and forestry have had a major impact (e.g. the Moors National Park lost 4.4% of their upland heathland between 1975 and 1983). Nonetheless the potential remains for restoration and enhancement of these areas.
Grouse moor management has retained much of the remaining heather moorland but even these areas would benefit from restoration and enhancement to address grazing problems, artificial drainage, bracken invasion, restoration of bird-of-prey numbers and lack of diversity due to local overgrazing and over-burning. Recovery of heather moorland from acidic grassland and in places from conifer forest is a further priority. Current schemes are addressing appropriate management and restoration (11,169 ha within agreements), but this represents less than 7% of the total resource, so much land remains in unfavourable condition outside these areas.
The Craven uplands hold over half the British resource of limestone pavement and also an important area of upland calcareous grassland. Over 75% of these geologically fascinating and botanically very rich habitats are covered by forms of agri-environment agreement. They are susceptible to agricultural intensification, and other forms of damage, and significant areas have been lost in the past. Future priorities are to continue to restore degraded parts of the resource and to try to reduce fragmentation by recreating calcareous grassland from other agricultural grassland.
The dales or lower ground within the upland parts of the region support some very important areas of limestone habitats, ancient woodland, wetland and hay meadows.
A particular type of upland hay meadow is largely restricted to northern England, requiring traditional farming methods and skills. The meadows are characterised by a variety of grasses and herbs like wood cranesbill, pignut, great burnet and lady's mantle species.
A recent report gave a total of 610 ha of good quality upland hay meadows in England, of which many are in North Yorkshire. Huge losses occurred earlier this century due to fertiliser use and ploughing. Examples remain in four Natural Areas with a total of about 2000 ha of varying quality currently within schemes (including semi improved). The aim is to further enhance much of this resource, which has been stabilised at a somewhat impoverished level, and to restore other remaining remnants of this once widespread community.
Other priority habitats of the uplands include areas of oak and ash woodland and fen wetlands. Much woodland has been lost over the centuries due to clearance for stock grazing and through conversion to plantation woodland. The scale of loss varies across the region but in parts of the Pennine uplands less than 1% of the land area remains under native tree cover. Improving management condition to save the remaining woods and extension and recovery of wider areas of woodland and scrub are high priorities. Similarly, types of fen or wetland habitat have been much reduced and impoverished across the uplands due to past drainage. Restoring natural hydrology and enhancing and extending the area of fens is an important objective.
The lowlands of the region retain a number of very significant areas of habitat of national priority, notably raised bog (35.3% of the UK`s total) lowland heathland, fen and reedbed (8% of the UK`s total) and areas of wood pasture. In addition, conservation-managed cereal field margins (18% of England's total) and ancient species-rich hedgerows (11.4% of England's total) merit special attention within the more intensively farmed landscape.
More generally the intensification of agriculture has contributed to dramatic reductions in the populations of many species, most noticeably birds like the skylark, (down 75% nationally), grey partridge (down 82% nationally) and Yellowhammer (down 37% nationally); and to a decline in a whole range of plant species. Wetland and riverside habitats and species have also been greatly diminished, whilst the extent of native woodland has been reduced over a much longer time-scale.
Most of the remaining semi-natural habitats are severely fragmented in their distribution and targets are directed at restoring habitat, particularly adjacent to existing areas, as well as to enhancing the state of existing sites. This is true of the following important habitats:
- Lowland heathlands (3% under agreement) which occur in three main Natural Areas and are important for a range of rare plants and animals, including nightjar and woodlark.
- Raised bog, fen and reedbed are most characteristic of the Humberhead Levels (e.g. Thorne and Hatfield Moors).
- The chalk grasslands of the Yorkshire Wolds (60% currently under agreement) and the particularly fragmented Magnesian limestone grasslands. This is of particular importance as it is exceedingly rare and much of it is found in this region (only a few hundred hectares in the whole country).
- Native and ancient woodlands, especially the priority wet woodlands and parklands (with their veteran trees of importance for specialist fungi, lichens and invertebrates) but also all other forms of native woodland and scrub.
- Lowland wet grasslands of river valley systems, such as the Lower Derwent Valley, which is noted both for its species-rich grasslands and the density and diversity of breeding and wintering birds.
The river systems of the lowlands include stretches of importance for their plants, invertebrates, fish and mammals (such as otter). However most of the region's rivers suffer at least some problems of water quality and quantity and action to restore the naturalness of our rivers is much needed.
Within the intensive arable and dairy farming areas of the region the priority objectives are to retain and improve management of the ancient hedgerows and field margins. Beyond this, much further work (to provide habitat variety, cover and year-round feeding) is required to start to reverse the decline in our once-common farmland birds.
Derelict land is a significant feature of parts of the region, most notably in the coal mining areas of South Yorkshire. The recovery of this land to more natural habitats, particularly to forms of woodland, is highly desirable in environmental as well as social and economic terms.
The region's coast includes the Humber estuary which is one of the top ten sites in Europe for wintering waterfowl with internationally important populations of brent geese, golden plover, grey plover, lapwing and knot. The inter-tidal sand and mudflats and saltmarsh areas are particularly important for the birds.
Flamborough Head is internationally important for its hard chalk cliffs, reefs and sea caves (15% of Britain's coastal chalk). The sea cliffs of the area support the largest seabird colony in England, including high numbers of gannet, kittiwake and puffin.
The principal issues that need to be addressed relate to improving water quality and allowing more natural, dynamic coastal processes. In terms of agricultural management, some extensification of management of salt marshes (18% in environmental schemes) and across the coastal strip would enable recovery of the more natural vegetation.
There are records for a total of 173 priority species of national conservation importance within the region although 67 of these have not been recorded recently and are thought likely to be lost from the region (Selman et al 1999). In addition, Local Biodiversity Action Plans are targeting other valued native species like buzzard, roe deer and cowslips for conservation within the region.
Recovery of many of the priority, as well as other scarce, species will be addressed through action to recover their habitats. For a number of others special actions will be required, often related to forms of agricultural or other land management. Examples of the birds, other animals and plants on the priority list are: corncrake, black grouse, short-eared owl, skylark, pearl-bordered fritillary, otter, water vole, red squirrel, lady's slipper orchid, Deptford pink and thistle broomrape.
The geological or geomorphological features of the region are extremely varied. They range from the exposures of rocks of different ages and fossil sites to landforms such as the glaciated uplands, caves, limestone pavements, chalk wolds and to coastal cliffs. Many locations are designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest.
Page last modified:
17 August, 2005
Page published: 1 October, 2000