Woodlands and Scrub: Facts and Figures

Table B.10 lists the broad habitat types that are typical of the dales of the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

Table B.10

Broad woodland habitat types in the Yorkshire Dales National Park and their related National Vegetation Classification codes (see Appendix 4). Area figures were derived from Drewitt (1991) based on a vegetation survey of The National Park carried out between 1985 and 1988 and from the Yorkshire Dales Natural Area Profile.

Habitat	NVC Communities	Total area/length in Park (ha/km)	Proportion of Yorkshire Dales area (%)	Biodiversity Importance
Upland Mixed Ashwoods	W8, W9, W13	969	0.6	High
Wet Woods	W3, W4, W5, W6, W7	109	<0.1	High
Upland Oakwoods	W11, W17	156	<0.1	High
Scrub	W19, W21, W22, W24	33	<0.1	High
Other Semi-natural Ancient Woodland	W8, W10, W16, plus unassigned	377	0.2	High
Wood Pasture and Parkland	Not applicable	62	<0.1	Medium
Non-native Broad-leaved and Mixed Plantations	Not applicable	773	0.4	Low
Coniferous Plantations	Not applicable	3773	2.1	Low
Total area		6252	~3.5

National & International biodiversity importance

Table B.11 lists the national and international importance of woodland habitats in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. National importance is simply defined as those habitats that have, or will have, Habitat Action Plans in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (Anon, 1995). International importance is defined as those habitats listed in Annex I of the European Habitats & Species Directive 92/43/EEC which sets out those habitats in need of conservation and protection in the European Community area. Table B.11 shows that the upland hay meadows of the of the Yorkshire Dales are of international importance. Most of the other habitats apart from arable land and improved grassland are of national biodiversity importance.

Table B.11

National and international importance of woodland habitats in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. National importance is simply defined as those habitats that have, or will have, Habitat Action Plans in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (Anon, 1995). International importance is defined as those habitats listed in Annex I of the European Habitats & Species Directive 92/43/EEC.

Habitat	UK Biodiversity Action Plan	European Union Habitats and Species Directive
Upland Mixed Ashwoods	Upland Mixed Ashwoods	-
Wet Woods	Wet Woods	-
Upland Oakwoods	Upland Oakwoods	-
Scrub	-	Juniperus communis formations on calcareous heaths or grassland
Other Semi-natural Ancient Woodland	-	-
Wood Pasture and Parkland	Lowland Wood Pasture and parkland	-
Non-native Broad-leaved and Mixed Plantations	-	-
Coniferous Plantations	-	-

Current issues, opportunities & threats to woodland biodiversity

Woodland habitats in the dales of the National Park have declined as a result of a combination of neglect, inappropriate management and grazing pressure from livestock and rabbits. This decline is being reversed through the use of incentives to landowners such as the Woodland Grant Scheme administered by the Forestry Commission and grants from the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust.

Increased use of the countryside for recreation can be ecologically damaging due footpath erosion, trampling and the physical damage caused by large numbers of people together with disturbance to wildlife particularly during the breeding season. There are, however, considerable benefits in enabling managed access to the countryside for the full cross-section of the human community as it provides an opportunity to educate and raise awareness of biodiversity and countryside issues. Conserving biodiversity is very dependent on the support of a well-informed human community with a sense of belonging and a genuine involvement in the process. Woodlands are often very robust habitats that can withstand high levels of recreational use therefore providing an opportunity to combine biodiversity education with conservation.