Chyenhal Moor is a poorly drained shallow valley, to the south-west of

Penzance Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. Due to several rare plants in a diverse range of habitats, it was notified as a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

(SSSI) in 1951.

Geography

Chyenhal Moor is a poorly drained shallow valley in the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

, on the southern side of the Land's End peninsula. The small stream draining the moor flows to Kerris Moor and reaches the sea at Lamorna Cove. The underlying rock is coarsely

porphyritic Porphyritic is an adjective used in geology to describe igneous rocks with a distinct difference in the size of mineral crystals, with the larger crystals known as phenocrysts. Both extrusive and intrusive rocks can be porphyritic, meaning all ...

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

and the

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...

s are mostly

humic Humic substances (HS) are organic compounds that are important components of humus, the major organic fraction of soil, peat, and coal (and also a constituent of many upland streams, dystrophic lakes, and ocean water). For a long era in the 19th an ...

, gleys, covered with varying depths of peat.

History

Until the early 19th-century rough-ground such as Chyenhal Moor was an important part of the

rural economy Rural economics is the study of rural economies. Rural economies include both agricultural and non-agricultural industries, so rural economics has broader concerns than agricultural economics which focus more on food systems. Rural developmen ...

, through the grazing of livestock and cutting of furze (

gorse ''Ulex'' (commonly known as gorse, furze, or whin) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. The genus comprises about 20 species of thorny evergreen shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae. The species are n ...

) for fuel. Moorland usually refers to uncultivated land on a hill, but locally it is also applied to wetlands such as this, and the nearby Kerris and Clodgy Moors. The high rainfall, poor drainage and acid conditions inhibit the action of

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...

which break down plant material resulting in the accumulation of a dark brown, fibrous material known as

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficien ...

. Chyenhal Moor has been a well known location for

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

since

John Ralfs John Ralfs (13 September 1807 – 14 July 1890) was an English botanist. Born in Millbrook, near Southampton, he was the second son of Samuel Ralfs, a yeoman of an old family in Hampshire. He has been commemorated in the names of many plant gro ...

(1807−1890) found rare plants here.

Wildlife and ecology

The moor was notified as a SSSI because of the diverse range of habitats and rare plants. Willow carr is the dominant habitat, is often dense and reaches a maximum height of 5 m. It is dominated by grey willow (''

Salix cinerea ''Salix cinerea'' (common sallow, grey sallow, grey willow, grey-leaved sallow, large grey willow, pussy willow, rusty sallow) is a species of willow native to Europe and western Asia.Meikle, R. D. (1984). ''Willows and Poplars of Great Britain ...

'') with some goat willow (''

Salix caprea ''Salix caprea'', known as goat willow, pussy willow or great sallow, is a common species of willow native to Europe and western and central Asia.Meikle, R. D. (1984). ''Willows and Poplars of Great Britain and Ireland''. BSBI Handbook 4. . Des ...

'') and the ground flora includes lesser spearwort (''

Ranunculus flammula ''Ranunculus flammula'', the lesser spearwort, greater creeping spearwort or banewort, is a species of perennial herbaceous plants in the genus ''Ranunculus'' (buttercup), growing in damp places throughout the Boreal Kingdom. It flowers June/Jul ...

''), marsh thistle (''

Cirsium palustre ''Cirsium palustre'', the marsh thistle or European swamp thistle, is a herbaceous biennial (or often perennial) flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. ''Cirsium palustre'' is a tall thistle which reaches up to in height. The strong stems ha ...

''), soft rush (''

Juncus effusus ''Juncus effusus'', with the common names common rush or soft rush, is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant species in the rush family Juncaceae. In North America, the common name soft rush also refers to '' Juncus interior''. Distribution ' ...

'') and yellow flag (''

Iris pseudacorus ''Iris pseudacorus'', the yellow flag, yellow iris, or water flag, is a species of flowering plant in the family Iridaceae. It is native to Europe, western Asia and northwest Africa. Its specific epithet ''pseudacorus'' means "false acorus", re ...

''). Within the willow are small patches of wet heath vegetation with Cornish moneywort (''

Sibthorpia europaea ''Sibthorpia europaea'' is a species of flowering plant known by the common name Cornish moneywort. It can be found as a disjunct distribution in Western Europe from the Azores, Portugal and Spain to south-western Ireland and south-western Unite ...

''), wavy-leaved St John's wort (''

Hypericum undulatum ''Hypericum undulatum'', the wavy St Johns Wort, is a herbaceous perennial flowering plant native to western Europe and northern Africa. The specific name ''undulatum'' is Latin, meaning "wavy" or "undulated", referring, just as the common name, ...

'') and ivy-leaved bellflower (''Hesperocodon hederaceus''). In the wetter parts are creeping forget-me-knot (''

Omphalodes verna ''Omphalodes verna'', the creeping navelwort or blue-eyed-Mary, is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial plant in the genus ''Omphalodes'' belonging to the family Boraginaceae. Etymology The genus name ''Omphalodes'' derives from the Greek word , ...

''), marsh pennywort (''

Hydrocotyle vulgaris ''Hydrocotyle vulgaris'', the marsh pennywort, common pennywort, water naval, money plant, lucky plant or copper coin, is a small creeping aquatic perennial plant native to North Africa, Europe, the Caucasus and parts of the Levant. Description ...

''), purple moorgrass (''

Molinia caerulea ''Molinia caerulea'', known by the common name purple moor-grass, is a species of grass that is native to Europe, west Asia, and north Africa. It grows in locations from the lowlands up to in the Alps. Like most grasses, it grows best in acid so ...

'') and various species of

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...

including ''

sphagnum ''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, peat moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store wa ...

s''. A species of note in the south-west corner of the site is pillwort (''

Pilularia globulifera ''Pilularia globulifera'', or pillwort, is an unusual species of fern in the family Marsileaceae. It is native to western Europe, where it grows at the edges of lakes, ponds, ditches and marshes, on wet clay or clay-sand soil, sometimes in water ...

''), a rare fern of wet heathland and acid pools. Plants surrounding the pool include bog pimpernel (''

Anagallis tenella ''Anagallis tenella'', known in Britain as the bog pimpernel, is a low growing perennial plant found in a variety of damp habitats from calcareous dune slacks to boggy and peaty heaths in Eurasia. In the United Kingdom it is mostly restricted ...

''), marsh St John's wort ('' Hypericum elodes''), purple moor-grass (''

''), ragged robin ('' Silene flos-cuculi''), scaly male-fern (''

Dryopteris affinis ''Dryopteris affinis'', the scaly male fern or golden-scaled male fern, is a fern native to western and southern Europe and southwestern Asia. It is most abundant on moist soils in woodlands in areas with high humidity, such as the British Isles ...

'') and water mint (''

Mentha aquatica ''Mentha aquatica'' (water mint; syn. ''Mentha hirsuta'' Huds.Euro+Med Plantbase Project''Mentha aquatica'') is a perennial flowering plant in the mint family Lamiaceae. It grows in moist places and is native to much of Europe, northwest Africa ...

''). A second, overgrown pond, in the south-east corner of the site has the rare unbranched bur-reed (''

Sparganium emersum ''Sparganium emersum'' is a species of flowering plant in the cat-tail family known by the common names European bur-reed and unbranched bur-reed. It has a circumboreal distribution, occurring throughout the northern latitudes of Eurasia and No ...

''), and a species very rare in Cornwall, ivy-leaved duckweed (''

Hesperocodon hederaceus ''Hesperocodon hederaceus'', synonym ''Wahlenbergia hederacea'', also known as the ivy-leaved bellflower, is a species of flowering plant that is found throughout Europe. It is the only species in the genus ''Hesperocodon''. The delicate, patch- ...

''). In the more open wet heathy habitats heath spotted orchid (''

Dactylorhiza maculata ''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 R ...

''), glaucous sedge (''

Carex flacca ''Carex flacca'', with common names blue sedge, gray carex, glaucous sedge, or carnation-grass, (syn. ''Carex glauca''), is a species of sedge native to parts of Europe and North Africa.

'') and star sedge (''

Carex echinata ''Carex echinata'' is a species of sedge known by the common names star sedge and little prickly sedge. Description ''Carex echinata'' has a solid, ridged stem that may exceed in height and it has a few thready leaves toward the base. The inflo ...

'') are found. Seven species of

dragonfly A dragonfly is a flying insect belonging to the infraorder Anisoptera below the order Odonata. About 3,000 extant species of true dragonfly are known. Most are tropical, with fewer species in temperate regions. Loss of wetland habitat threate ...

have been recorded including the broad-bodied chaser (''

Libellula depressa ''Libellula depressa'', the broad-bodied chaser or broad-bodied darter,Hart. M., et al, (1978), ''The Naturetrail Omnibus'', London: Usborne Publishing Limited, page 157 is one of the most common dragonflies in Europe and central Asia. It is ve ...

'') and the four-spotted chaser ( ''Libellula quadrimaculata''). In the north of the site is an open-heathy area dominated by common gorse (''

Ulex europaeus ''Ulex europaeus'', the gorse, common gorse, furze or whin, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to the British Isles and Western Europe. Description Growing to tall, it is an evergreen shrub. The young stems are g ...

'') and heather (''

Calluna vulgaris ''Calluna vulgaris'', common heather, ling, or simply heather, is the sole species in the genus ''Calluna'' in the flowering plant family Ericaceae. It is a low-growing evergreen shrub growing to tall, or rarely to and taller, and is found wid ...

''). The rare Dorset heath ('' Erica ciliaris'') was planted here in 1934.

Culture

Chyenhal Moor was the subject of paintings by two

Newlyn School The Newlyn School was an art colony of artists based in or near Newlyn, a fishing village adjacent to Penzance, on the south coast of Cornwall, from the 1880s until the early twentieth century. The establishment of the Newlyn School was reminisc ...

artists,

Stanhope Forbes Stanhope Alexander Forbes (18 November 1857 – 2 March 1947) was a British artist and a founding member of the influential Newlyn school of painters. He was often called 'the father of the Newlyn School'.Harold Harvey. Harvey's depicts the winter cutting of furze (gorse) on the moor.

References

Sources

* {{cite book, last1=Lawman, first1=Jean, title=A Natural History of Land's End , date=2002, publisher=Tabb House, location=Padstow, isbn=1 873951 40 X Penwith Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cornwall Sites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1951 Wetlands of England