Guidelines for the Selection of Biological Heritage Sites
6. Section 1: Habitat Guidelines
6.11 OTHER AREAS OF SEMI-NATURAL HABITAT AND HABITAT MOSAICS
Hm 1 Areas of semi-natural habitat greater than 10 hectares in Landscape Zone West (1)
Application
This guideline may be applied to any area supporting semi-natural vegetation within the stated criteria, irrespective of type or origin. Some sites may support a single habitat type, but a combination is more usual. Most such sites are largely of secondary origin, comprising land formerly in agricultural or industrial use.
Justification
Continuous areas of semi-natural vegetation greater than 10 hectares in extent are rare on the coastal plain. In these intensively used landscapes, any such areas are likely to be important reservoirs for wildlife and make a significant contribution to local biodiversity.
Hm2 Areas of semi-natural vegetation greater than 15 hectares in Landscape Character Tracts(1) Ei, Eii, Fi and Fii.
Application
See Hm1.
Justification
Although less so than the coastal plain, the lowland fringe farmland and valley landscapes are, for the most part, subject to intensive agricultural or urban use. Large continuous areas of semi-natural habitat are again an important wildlife refuge.
Hm3 Semi-natural habitat mosaics greater than 10 hectares which contribute significantly to the biodiversity of the Landscape Character Tract(1) in which they occur.
Application
This guideline is most commonly applied to complex mosaics of woodland and grassland, frequently with smaller areas of other habitats, which would not individually qualify for inclusion as Biological Heritage Sites. Such sites are frequently used for grazing stock, but not intensively so: they may be wholly or partially unmanaged and evidence of succession of certain habitats by others as a result may occur. Such sites are most typically to be found amongst the 'cloughs' of south and east Lancashire.
Justification
Habitat mosaics as described are an important reservoir for biodiversity, especially in parts of the county where good examples of individual habitat types are particularly scarce. They also have an intrinsic value in the variety of habitats, and transitions between habitats, that they contain. These provide important and additional niches for species which depend on more than one habitat during their daily routine, like bats and some birds, or depend on different habitats at different stages in their life cycles, such as amphibians and various invertebrates.