The Brighton and Lewes Downs Biosphere Reserve (established 2014) is a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Biosphere Reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

located in

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

on the southeast coast of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

near the city of

Brighton and Hove Brighton and Hove () is a city and unitary authority in East Sussex, England. It consists primarily of the settlements of Brighton and Hove, alongside neighbouring villages. Often referred to synonymously as Brighton, the City of Brighton and H ...

. Forming a central unit of the hills of the

South Downs National Park The South Downs National Park is England's newest national park, designated on 31 March 2010. The park, covering an area of in southern England, stretches for from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east through the counties of Hamp ...

, it is centred on the Brighton

chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Chalk ...

block that lies between the

River Adur The Adur ( or ) is a river in Sussex, England; it gives its name to the Adur district of West Sussex. The river, which is long, was once navigable for large vessels up as far as Steyning, where there was a large Saxon port, but by the 11th ce ...

in the west and the River Ouse in the east. Chalk

downland Downland, chalkland, chalk downs or just downs are areas of open chalk hills, such as the North Downs. This term is used to describe the characteristic landscape in southern England where chalk is exposed at the surface. The name "downs" is deriv ...

makes up the principal terrestrial landscape of the area, bounded at each end by the two river valleys. The coastline is dominated by impressive chalk cliffs in the east and urbanized plains in the west, running to the estuary of the River Adur at

Shoreham-by-Sea Shoreham-by-Sea (often shortened to Shoreham) is a coastal town and port in West Sussex, England. The town is bordered to its north by the South Downs, to its west by the Adur Valley and to its south by the River Adur and Shoreham Beach on the ...

. The area is nationally and internationally renowned for its arts and culture, distinctive settlements, independent mindset and its links to the surrounding iconic English landscape of downland, white chalk cliffs and beaches.

Area

The reserve's surface area is . The core area is , surrounded by buffer zone(s) of and transition area(s) of .

Ecological characteristics

Brighton and Lewes Downs Biosphere Reserve is found within the temperate

broadleaf forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

biome A biome () is a biogeographical unit consisting of a biological community that has formed in response to the physical environment in which they are found and a shared regional climate. Biomes may span more than one continent. Biome is a broader ...

of the

Palearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...

realm's British Island province and includes the following

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s: coastal chalk cliffs, sub-tidal chalk reef, freshwater

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

, shingle beaches, deciduous woodland, river

estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...

and chalk

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

. Three distinct but interrelated environments make up the biosphere reserve area; rural, coastal and marine, and urban. The rural environment contains lowland

chalk grassland Calcareous grassland (or alkaline grassland) is an ecosystem associated with thin basic soil, such as that on chalk and limestone downland. Plants on calcareous grassland are typically short and hardy, and include grasses and herbs such as clove ...

which is one of the richest wildlife habitats in the country and particularly important for its high botanical species diversity with up to 40-50 vascular plant species per square meter. It also supports the invertebrate communities, notably butterflies with 20 species having a substantial proportion of their breeding populations within this habitat. Characteristic species include:

Phyteuma orbiculare Phyteuma orbiculare, common name round-headed rampion or Pride of Sussex, is a herbaceous perennial plant of the genus ''Phyteuma'' belonging to the family Campanulaceae. Description ''Phyteuma orbiculare'' reaches on average of height. A deep ...

, Wart-biter (''Decticus verrucivorus''), and Adonis blue butterfly (''Lysandra bellargus''). The coastal and marine environments are made up of a moderately exposed coast and inshore area of the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

with cliffs providing nesting niches for birds such as Northern fulmar (''Fulmarus glacialis''). The discontinuous chalk ledge to the west of Brighton gives rise to a unique series of low underwater north-facing chalk cliffs with biological records of over 300 marine species in the area. The area is home to 211 species that have been recorded on international conservation lists, such as the

European eel The European eel (''Anguilla anguilla'') is a species of eel, a snake-like, catadromous fish. They are normally around and rarely reach more than , but can reach a length of up to in exceptional cases. Eels have been important sources of fo ...

(''Anguilla Anguilla'')) in addition to 1,052 local rare species including the

hedgehog A hedgehog is a spiny mammal of the subfamily Erinaceinae, in the eulipotyphlan family Erinaceidae. There are seventeen species of hedgehog in five genera found throughout parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and in New Zealand by introducti ...

(''Erinaceus europaeus'') and

yellowhammer The yellowhammer (''Emberiza citrinella'') is a passerine bird in the bunting family that is native to Eurasia and has been introduced to New Zealand and Australia. Most European birds remain in the breeding range year-round, but the eastern ...

(''Emberiza citronella''). Important local genetic varieties of species include the unique

elm Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of North ...

tree {''Elmus'' spp.) as well as wild apple tree varieties. The domesticated breeds of

Southdown sheep The Southdown is a British breed of domestic sheep, the smallest of the British breeds. It is a shortwool breed, and the basis of the whole Down group of breeds. It was originally bred by John Ellman of Glynde, near Lewes in East Sussex, in a ...

and rare

Sussex cattle The Sussex is a British breed of red beef cattle from the Weald of Sussex, Surrey and Kent, in south-eastern England. Its traditional use as a draught ox on the Weald continued into the twentieth century. From the late nineteenth century it beg ...

are also distinctive to the area.

Socio-economic characteristics

The biosphere area is home to around 371,500 people, the great majority of whom are urban-dwellers in the transition area (population around 358,500) in the main settlements of the city of Brighton and Hove and the towns of

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of ...

, Newhaven,

Peacehaven Peacehaven is a town and civil parish in the Lewes district of East Sussex, England. It is located above the chalk cliffs of the South Downs approximately six miles () east of Brighton city centre, on the A259 road. Its site coincides with the ...

, Shoreham and Southwick. The rural buffer zone of the South Downs National Park is additionally home to a population of around 13,500 people whilst no inhabitants occupy the 14 protected areas that make up the core areas. Due to its proximity to London (55 miles) it is a target for tourists, receiving around 12 million visitors per year. They are attracted to the high quality natural environment, dynamic contemporary culture and significant and rich heritage, which includes a range of archaeological sites dating back to the Neolithic period as well as a legacy of more recent renowned urban architecture. Evolving from a seaside resort to a service sector economy, Brighton and Hove has a total population of 273,000. However, socio-economic challenges exist with urban areas constrained in their size and future growth by their geography (between the sea and the national park). Economic activities include harvesting and extraction of primary resources, mainly through farming and commercial sea fishing. Coastal fishing sees the majority of the catch sent to local and regional markets and restaurants with the remainder going to mainland Europe where there is high demand.

Sources

References

External links

Official web siteDetailed map of the Brighton and Lewes Downs Biosphere Reserve
{{Authority control Sussex Biomes Biosphere reserves of England Biodiversity National parks in England Parks and open spaces in West Sussex Parks and open spaces in East Sussex Environment of East Sussex Environment of West Sussex