Countryside Conservation and
Restoration
The heathlands and acid grasslands of Wyre
Forest are an excellent resource. They support many rare and
unusual species, and also offer local people the opportunity to
escape their usual environment and experience what are now rare and
threatened habitats.
Unfortunately it is a fact
that these sites cannot manage themselves. Left to their own
devices the open areas of heath and grassland would soon become
swamped by Silver Birch, Broom and young Oak. In days gone by,
these scrub species were harvested and utilised by local people to
provide fire wood, besom brooms, animal fodder and so on. However
this is no longer the case so these species soon take hold.
The prevention of this
succession from heath to woodland is a mammoth task, and one which
requires many approaches.
Rifle Range SSI and Burlish
Top
Over the last ten years or
so a great deal of work has taken place on the Rifle range SSSI and
Burlish Top Local nature reserve, not only maintaining what heath
we have but also restoring areas that had been lost to
woodland.
The restoration process
starts with the removal of young woodland, in areas that show good
potential for heathland restoration. These newly felled areas, are
quite barren to begin with, but soon begin to show signs of new
life. To prevent the grasses becoming too dense and to control
bramble and other woody plants, where possible we employ our
favoured method of using our rare breed cattle or sheep to do this
but where this is not a viable option we use our cut/collect mowing
machine. This has shown to be a very successful approach, and has
led to some excellent quality acid grassland/heathland being
restored.
What we are trying to create
is often referred to as a mosaic, a thriving heathland made up of
dense mats of common heather, interspersed with areas of broom,
gorse, birch scrub and patches of bare ground.
To many of this areas rarest
species (such as solitary wasps, lizards, and grass snakes) the
bare ground and low shrub layer are essential as basking
and hunting areas. The areas of scrub allow birds to perch in
safety, while the open areas provide an ideal hunting and foraging
ground.
Lowland heath such as the Rifle Range has now been
described by Natural England as more threatened than Tropical
Rainforest, and thus must be restored, to prevent the birds,
reptiles and invertebrates that rely on it being lost forever.
The mowing has been
underway now for a few weeks, and will be finished prior to March
31st, the date given to us by the RSPB.
This year, in addition to
the mowing, there was also a large piece of felling work planned to
restore an area of acid grassland, which was under dense tree
cover. The work not only expanded the area of grassland on
Burlish Top, but also linked the site with the Rifle Range
SSSI, allowing the movement and spread of important species between
the two sites that would otherwise be separated by the young
woodland.
Works were carried out
throughout November and December 2010.
View a map of
the works 
(12735K)
These works are essential
for the survival of many of the species that rely on the habitat
provided by these wonderful nature reserves.
For more information please contact Wyre Forest Ranger Service
on 01562 732928