County Wildife Site Criteria for Cornwall Appendices

LOCAL BOUNDARIESGeneral DescriptionThe typical Cornish hedge is sometimes referred to as a kind of ‘field bank’. These traditionalboundaries are formed of earthen banks faced with stone. There may or may not be shrubbyvegetation or trees growing along the top. The vegetation along the top of and earth bank isconsidered to be a hedgerow and can be considered for inclusion within the ancient and/or speciesrichhedgerow PHT. However, the earth bank itself has received no such recognition.The Cornish Hedge is a characteristic feature of the landscape that affords habitat for a wide range ofplants and animals, some of which are priority species in their own right.National ContextEarth banks are most common in those parts of the country where hedgerows would suffer frommost exposure. It is for that reason that the y are found so commonly in Cornwall and westernWales. There would appear to be no figure for the national resource of this habitat.Cornwall ContextWhile it is evident that the majority of boundaries in the county are Cornish Hedges, there has beenno estimate of the size of this habitat. It is known that the total length of the boundary system withinCornwall is about 50 000 km and that the majority of it is made up of Cornish hedges. However,there does not appear to have been any detailed systematic work carried out on the natureconservation value of this habitat.Length of field Banks in Cornwall (km): ca 40 000 (at least 4000 ha)All local boundaries are eligible for selectionNb. It’s most likely that boundaries will be included as an integral part of a mosaic of other locally/nationallyimportant habitats, but outstanding examples will be eligible for selection in their own right. This will need tobe judged case-by-case using expert judgement.Appendix 5 - Information Relating to Local Habitat Types.County Wildlife Sites Criteria