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Culm Measures
The Culm Measures are a thick sequence of geological strata originating during the Carboniferous Period that occur in south-west England, principally in Devon and Cornwall, now known as the Culm Supergroup. Its estimated thickness varies between 3600 m and 4750 m though intense folding complicates it at outcrop. They are so called because of the occasional presence in the Barnstaple–Hartland area of a soft, often lenticular, sooty coal, which is known in Devon as ''culm''. The word culm may be derived from the Old English word for coal ''col'' or from the Welsh word ''cwlwm'' meaning knot (due to the folding of the beds in which the coal is found). Most of the succession consists of shales and thin sandstones, but there are also occurrences of slate, limestone and chert. Culm grassland on the formation's slates and shales is composed of purple moor grass and rush pasture. It is noted for a wide diversity of species, some extremely rare including the marsh fritillary butterfly. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Millook Cliffs Enh
Millook is a deep coastal valley and hamlet in the parish of Poundstock, on the north coast of Cornwall, England. In 2014 the cliffs at Millook Haven were voted by the Geological Society of London as one of Britain's top 10 geological sites, leading the "folding and faulting" category. The cliffs display an impressive series of recumbent chevron folds, in Carboniferous age killas of inter-bedded sandstones and shales, originally deposited in deep water. The stony beach is popular with surfers despite there being few parking spaces and the South West Coast Path passes through the seaward end of the valley. The ancient semi-natural woodland has been described as the best ravine wood in Cornwall and along with the coast is within the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Millook Valley Woods The woodland runs roughly north-south from the A39 at Wainhouse Corner to the coast at Millook Haven. It consists of four separate properties now owned by the Woodland Trust; C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Natural England
Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, freshwater and marine environments, geology and soils, are protected and improved. It also has a responsibility to help people enjoy, understand and access the natural environment. Natural England focuses its activities and resources on four strategic outcomes: * a healthy natural environment * enjoyment of the natural environment * sustainable use of the natural environment * a secure environmental future Roles and responsibilities As a non-departmental public body (NDPB), Natural England is independent of government. However, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs has the legal power to issue guidance to Natural England on various matters, a constraint that was not placed on its predecessor NDPBs. Its powers in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bogbean
''Menyanthes'' is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the family Menyanthaceae containing the single species ''Menyanthes trifoliata''. The North American form is often referred to as ''M. trifoliata'' var. ''minor'' Michx. It is known in English by the common names bogbean and buckbean. Description ''Menyanthes trifoliata'' has a horizontal rhizome with alternate, trifoliate leaves. The inflorescence is an erect raceme of white flowers. The species occurs in fens and bogs in Asia, Europe, and North America. In eastern North America, it is considered to be a diagnostic fen species. It sometimes creates big quagmires with its thick roots. Taxonomy The name ''Menyanthes'' comes from the Greek words ''menyein'', meaning "disclosing", and ''anthos'', meaning "flower", in reference to the sequential opening of flowers on the inflorescence. Fossil record One fossil seed of ''Menyanthes trifoliata'' has been extracted from borehole samples of the Middle Miocene fresh wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Southern Marsh-orchid
''Dactylorhiza praetermissa'', the southern marsh orchid or leopard marsh orchid, is a commonly occurring species of European orchid. Description ''Dactylorhiza praetermissa'' grows to tall, with leaves generally unspotted. The flowers, appearing from May to July, are various shades of pink with variable markings. The basal lip of the flower is rounded. This species is able to form hybrids with other ''Dactylorhiza'' species, and crosses with ''Dactylorhiza fuchsii'' occur especially often. Distribution and habitat It is native to northern and central Europe (Britain, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Estonia and Latvia). It is also reportedly naturalized in Italy and in parts of Canada (Ontario and Newfoundland). This species is found close to water, in damp alkaline meadows, by ponds, lakes or reservoirs and in dune slacks. Ecology The flowers of this species are pollinated by insects including the cuckoo bee and skipper butterfly. ''Da ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heath Spotted-orchid
''Dactylorhiza maculata'', known as the heath spotted-orchid or moorland spotted orchid, is an herbaceous perennial plant of the family Orchidaceae. It is widespread in mountainous regions across much of Europe from Portugal and Iceland east to Russia. It is also found in Algeria, Morocco, and western Siberia. Etymology The name of the genus ''Dactylorhiza'' is formed from the Greek words δάκτυλος 'daktylos' meaning 'finger' and ρίζα 'ridza' meaning 'root' and refers to the tubers of this plant, which are split into several tubercles. The specific epithet 'maculata', meaning 'spotted', refers to the stained leaves. The scientific binomial name of this plant was initially ''Orchis maculata'', proposed by the Swedish naturalist and botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1753. The name was changed to the one currently accepted (''Dactylorhiza maculata'') by the Hungarian botanist Károly Rezső Soó in 1962. In German this plant is called ''Geflecktes Knabenkraut'', in French ''or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cornwall AONB
The Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers in Cornwall, England, UK; that is, about 27% of the total area of the county. It comprises 12 separate areas, designated under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 for special landscape protection. Of the areas, eleven cover stretches of coastline; the twelfth is Bodmin Moor. The areas are together treated as a single Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). Section 85 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 places a duty on all relevant authorities when discharging any function affecting land within an AONB to have regard to the purpose of conserving and enhancing natural beauty. Section 89 places a statutory duty on Local Planning Authorities with an AONB within their administrative area to produce a 5-year management plan. Designation The areas were designated in 1959, except for the Camel estuary which was added in 1981. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North Devon Coast Area Of Outstanding Natural Beauty
The North Devon Coast was designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in September 1959. The AONB contributes to a family of protected landscapes in the Southwest of England and a total of 38% of the region is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as Category V Protected Landscapes. The twelve Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty extend to 30% of the region, twice the proportion covered by AONBs in England as a whole and a further two National Parks, Dartmoor and Exmoor, cover an additional 7%. The North Devon Coast AONB covers of mainly coastal landscape from the border of Exmoor National Park at Combe Martin, through the mouth of the Taw & Torridge Estuary to the Cornish border at Marsland Mouth. The dune system at Braunton Burrows forms the core area of North Devon's Biosphere Reserve, the first "new style" Unesco-designated reserve in the United Kingdom. The whole of the AONB is within the Reserve boundaries. Overview The North Devon Coast w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dartmoor National Park
Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite which forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous Period of geological history. The landscape consists of moorland capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The highest point is High Willhays, above sea level. The entire area is rich in antiquities and archaeology. Dartmoor National Park is managed by the Dartmoor National Park Authority, whose 22 members are drawn from Devon County Council, local district councils and Government. Parts of Dartmoor have been used as military firing ranges for over 200 years. The public is granted extensive land access rights on Dartmoor (including restricted access to the firing ranges) and it is a popular tourist destination. Physical geography Geology Dartmoor includes the largest area o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Natural Areas Of England
The Natural Areas of England are regions, officially designated by Natural England, each with a characteristic association of wildlife and natural features. More formally, they are defined as "biogeographic zones which reflect the geological foundation, the natural systems and processes and the wildlife in different parts of England...".Biodiversity: The UK Steering Group Report, HMSO, 1995 There are 120 Natural Areas in England ranging from the North Pennines to the Dorset Heaths and from The Lizard to The Fens. They were first defined in 1996 by English Nature and the Countryside Commission, with help from English Heritage. They produced a map of England that depicts the natural and cultural dimensions of the landscape.''Natural Areas'' at www.naturalareas.naturalengland.org.uk. Accessed on 4 Apr 2013. Natural A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boggy Moorland - Geograph
A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; alkaline mires are called fens. A baygall is another type of bog found in the forest of the Gulf Coast states in the United States.Watson, Geraldine Ellis (2000) ''Big Thicket Plant Ecology: An Introduction'', Third Edition (Temple Big Thicket Series #5). University of North Texas Press. Denton, Texas. 152 pp. Texas Parks and Wildlife. Ecological Mapping systems of Texas: West Gulf Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall'. Retrieved 7 July 2020 They are often covered in heath or heather shrubs rooted in the sphagnum moss and peat. The gradual accumulation of decayed plant material in a bog functions as a carbon sink. Bogs occur where the water at the ground surface is acidic and low in nutrients. In contrast to fens, they derive most o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chudleigh Group
Chudleigh () is an ancient wool town located within the Teignbridge District Council area of Devon, England between Newton Abbot and Exeter. The electoral ward with the same name had a population of 6,125 at the 2011 census. Geography Chudleigh is very close to the edge of Dartmoor and in the Teign Valley. Nearby Castle Dyke is an Iron Age Hill Fort which demonstrates far earlier settlement in the area. It is also near Haldon Forest, a Forestry Commission property. The town has been bypassed by the A38 road since 1972. Great Fire of Chudleigh The weather conditions in Devon in the year 1807 have been described as a drought. Weeks without rain left many people short of water and had farmers worrying about their crops. At around noon on 22 May, a small fire broke out in a pile of furze stacked near the ovens at a bakery in Culver Street (now New Exeter Street). According to later reports, the staff in the bakery seemed unaware of the danger this posed, but the fire, fed by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
