County Wildife Site Criteria for Cornwall Appendices

PURPLE MOOR GRASS AND RUSH PASTURES PHTGeneral DescriptionPurple moor grass and rush pastures occur on poorly drained, usually acidic soils in lowland areas ofhigh rainfall in western Europe. Their vegetation, which has a distinct character, consists of variousspecies-rich types of fen meadow and rush pasture. Purple moor grass Molinia caerulea, and rushes,especially sharp-flowered rush Juncus acutiflorus, are usually abundantNational ContextIn Britain, they are found in south-west England, particularly in Devon, southern Wales, south-westScotland, perhaps extending as far north as northern Argyll.In Wales it is estimated that there is now about 24 000 ha of lowland purple moor grass and rushpasture. In south west England 530 purple moor grass and rush pastures sites are known to surviveon the Culm Measures, covering 3981 ha, 400 sites on Dartmoor covering 1000 ha with a further 90sites covering about 300 ha on the Blackdowns. No area estimates are available for Scotland, but thetotal extent is thought likely to be in the region of 2000 ha. Thus it is probable that the total extent ofthe habitat in the UK is now about 31 000 ha (56 000 ha UK). This is thought to be considerablymore than survives in the rest of Europe, with the possible exception of the Republic of Ireland.Area of PHT in Cornwall (ha): 9203% National TotalNumber of polygons: 463The habitat is: Fairly RareDistribution by Administrative DistrictDistrict P K CK R CN NC ΣNumber 13 29 0 84 4 333 463Area (ha) 25 75 0 400 10 410 920Distribution by Natural AreaDistrict Pe Lz CKG BM Cu ΣNumber 13 0 127 2 321 463Area (ha) 23 0 530 2 365 920For this habitat the threshold is 1.0 haAppendix 4 - Information Relating to Priority Habitat TypesCounty Wildlife Sites Criteria