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Action for rare plants in Hampshire’s Thames Basin

A new project run by conservation charity Plantlife aims to help rare and threatened plant species to flourish in heathlands in the Thames Basin.

February 18 2010

A new project run by conservation charity Plantlife aims to help rare and threatened plant species to flourish in heathlands in the Thames Basin.

A nationally important wildlife site at Bramshill, north of Hartley Wintney in Hampshire, has been restored by the Forestry Commission from a former quarry site to a wildlife haven over the last decade. Not only one of the best sites in the UK for dragonfly and damselfly and of European significance for rare birds, it is a very special habitat of national importance for its rare plants. Working alongside the Forestry Commission, Plantlife is taking action to ensure that Bramshill’s threatened plants thrive in the future.

What plants are found at Bramshill Common?

Bramshill Common supports a variety of wildflowers and other plants, from vibrant yellow Gorse to Marsh St John’s-wort, Marsh Pennywort, Gypsy-wort and Water Mint. Rare heathland plants including Pillwort and Marsh Clubmoss are also known to be present and both these species are listed on the UK Government’s Biodiversity Action Plan as priority species in need of conservation action. This unique heathland also supports large numbers of plants and insects, but no overall census has been carried out across the area since 1986.

What is Plantlife doing?
The first phase of the project involves an extensive survey of the common to hunt for rare and not-so-rare species to estimate numbers. This data will be vital to the planning for the management of these plants in the future.

What has been found so far?
Initial surveys have revealed that Bramshill is likely to be a nationally significant site for Pillwort and that another threatened species, Marsh Clubmoss, is still present at several locations on the common, with one completely new site located during the surveys. Two species of fern – Royal Fern and Lemon Scented Fern – have also been recorded. More surveys will take place in the spring.

Dragonflies, damselflies and other wildlife
Bramshill is a designated Special Protection Area (SPA) for Nightjar, Dartford Warbler and Woodlark. It is also a ‘hotspot’ for dragonflies and damselflies with at least 24 of the 38 species in the UK, including the nationally scarce Small Red Damselfly and the endangered Brilliant Emerald Dragonfly. Restoring the wild plant habitat will benefit these and other insects including the nationally scarce Woodland Grasshopper.

Plantlife’s project partners
Plantlife’s work at Bramshill is only possible thanks to generous funding of more than £27,000 from SITA Trust and The Veolia Environmental Trust, awarded through the Landfill Communities Fund.

A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), Bramshill has been restored to date by the Forestry Commission through a combination of sustainable forest management and natural regeneration of pond habitat. Following detailed surveys of the area, Plantlife will be working alongside the Forestry Commission to continue management work to restore and expand the habitats to support Bramshill’s rare plants. This will compliment the landscape scale management carried out by the Forestry Commission to enhance biodiversity across the area, which is part of a 30-year vision for this area of the Thames Basin Heaths.

Plantlife’s Species Recovery Officer, Dominic Price, said: 'It's fantastic to be able to survey a relatively remote site in such detail and with the sum of money provided to then restore areas of the site. We look forward to being able to make a big difference to Bramshill, thanks to SITA Trust and The Veolia Environmental Trust.'

SITA Trust Chairman, Marek Gordon, said: 'SITA Trust is delighted to provide financial support to Plantlife through our multi million pound Enriching Nature programme. Our panel of biodiversity specialists considered this to be a very well developed project with excellent potential biodiversity gain.'

The Veolia Environmental Trust Executive Director, Margaret Cobbold, added, 'The Trust is happy to be supporting this important project. Habitats such as Bramshill Common are a valuable part of our natural heritage and I look forward to hearing about the progress of this scheme to protect and restore it.'

For more information and images contact:
Sue Nottingham, Plantlife Press Officer - tel 01722 342757
Dominic Price, Plantlife Species Recovery Officer - tel 01722 342749,
Jay Doyle, Forestry Commission Forest Ecologist - tel 01420 23666