Securing Biodiversity in Breckland - European Commission

Heather should rather be considered as a useful indicator of appropriate structure, with the aim toensure most heather present is in the pioneer stage – representing hard grazing and recent physicaldisturbance (for seedling regeneration).It is difficult to reconcile the requirements of priority biodiversity in Breckland, with the idea thatcattle should be removed from a site, or that the intensity of sheep grazing should be reduced, inorder to avoid ‘damage to heather’. The grassy condition of vegetation at sites maintained with a lowto moderate grazing intensity in order to maintain building or mature stage heather bears no relationto the exposed mineral soil between individual heather plants that is apparent in some historicphotos. This emphasises the unsuitability of such grazing regimes in mitigating the effects of nutrientdeposition and accumulation.Recommendations: Grazing intensity should not be constrained by the presence of heather on a site. HeatherCalluna vulgaris is best regarded as an indicator of site structure, not as an objective ofmanagement. If most of the heather present on a site occurs as tightly grazed cushions of pioneer growth,within a matrix of bare mineral sand this indicates that:o Recent appropriate disturbance has occurred.o Grazing levels are appropriate for the long term persistence of oligotrophicvegetation.o Dite conditions are probably appropriate for a wide range of specialist Brecklandspecies that require early succession conditions and disturbed soil.149