Habitats
Why is the Ridge Special? | Hillforts | Access
The mid-Cheshire Sandstone Ridge contains a variety of habitats reflecting the geological evolution and human habitation over the last 7000 years. Wooded sandstone hills, meres and mosses, heaths, areas of extractive industry and recreation are set within a matrix of intensively productive farmland.
Extensive tracts of woodland give a distinctive feel to the area and are a marked contrast with the open flatness of the surrounding plain. Ancient sessile oak and birch woodlands with an upland character can be found on the steep slopes of the ridge escarpment. These are important elevated locations for birds of prey such as peregrine falcon and buzzard, as well as raven. Emphasising their upland character the woods are also home to typical upland birds such as pied flycatcher and wood warbler.
The thin and infertile slopes to the east of the Ridge have been extensively planted with conifers, notably at Peckforton and Delamere Forest, or have naturally regenerated with birch and oak on former heathland, as in the south at Bickerton Hill. Nationally important stands of open heather-dominated vegetation still grow on Bickerton Hill, with numerous remnants of heathland vegetation scattered elsewhere throughout the area. Examples of agriculturally unimproved acidic grassland along the Ridge are now extremely rare.
Glacial processes have played an important role in shaping this landscape. The Cheshire Plain is an expanse of devensian till, while hummocky terrain of Delamere Forest arose from deposition of moraine (glacial sand and gravel) and the formation of hollows left by the melting ice blocks from the retreating ice sheets. The nature conservation and distinctiveness of the area arises from the sandy, acidic quality of its soils and its high water table. These factors have caused the infilling of most water filled hollows by peat to form mossy basins. Only at Oak Mere and Hatchmere does open water remain, although at Abbots Moss a skin of moss and peat has formed concealing the 'lake' beneath. Such unusual and near natural wetlands are rare in lowland Britain and many are internationally recognised sites of importance for nature conservation. Sphagnum mosses create a colourful lawn supporting uncommon bog plants such as sundew, bog asphodel, and bog rosemary as well as the white beaked sedge. Dragonflies of many species including white faced darter hunt for insects while as many as 140 species of spiders hunt within the damp moss.
The area is predominantly farmed, mainly for dairy farming, but with increasing amounts of maize and arable. An historic pattern of hedged fields and locally sandstone walls still survives, with scattered hedgerow trees and field ponds. Sand extraction and to a lesser extent sandstone quarrying have created opportunities for the development of new habitats.
Overview of Programme activities scheduled for each hillfort
Why is the Ridge Special? | Hillforts | Access