Ecological change in British broadleaved woodland since 1947

Abstract

Over the last 60 years Britain's broadleaved woodlands have undergone a complex pattern of ecological change. The total extent has expanded from c. 676 000 ha in 1947 to c. 904 000 ha in 2002, but there has also been significant turnover, with losses of ancient woodland and a gain from new planting. Structural change has occurred due, in part, to change in management. In 1947 21% of the broadleaved resource was classed as coppice, 28% as scrub and only 51% of the area as high forest, compared with 97% high forest in 2002. This has been accompanied by changes in ground flora and the regeneration pattern of tree species, which will impact upon the character of the woodlands. Woods have also become more ecologically isolated because of the decline in semi‐natural vegetation in the surrounding countryside, although the long‐term impacts of this are poorly understood. Other factors driving ecological change are increased pollution, change in grazing pressures, climate change, alien species and game management. Overall woodland specialist species and those of open habitats tend to be doing less well than woodland generalists. Progress has been made in reversing some adverse impacts such as acid deposition, and action is being taken to reduce the impact of others such as over‐grazing by deer. However, some drivers, notably climate change, will be more difficult to address. In the long term integrated management of woods as landscape components whilst meeting economic and societal needs will be required.

Are bird density, species richness and community structure similar between native woodlands and non-native plantations in an area with a generalist bird fauna?

“…Bird species richness is associated with vegetation structure (Cherkaoui et al 2009;Nikolov 2009), and changes in the structural diversity of woodland is one possible contributing factor to observed declines in British woodland bird populations Gill and Fuller 2007;Hopkins and Kirby 2007). Our finding, that species richness was significantly related to understorey cover, emphasises the importance of woodland vegetation structure to birds.…”

Long-term approaches to native woodland restoration: Palaeoecological and stakeholder perspectives on Atlantic forests of Northern Europe

“…by Deschampsia cespitosa and if that's what you want to grow then fine.' Such trends are leading to widespread changes in the character of the woods (Hopkins and Kirby, 2007). A local ecologist commented that birch expansion is not considered favourable under the EU Habitats Directive, since it contributes to the tendency for non-designated habitats to take over from target species or habitats.…”

Habitat correlates of Eurasian Woodcock Scolopax rusticola abundance in a declining resident population

“…Changes to woodland management practices over the course of the last century (e.g. reduction of coppicing, monocultural forestry) have reduced the areas of open and young woodland habitats and produced woods that are less heterogenous in terms of tree age and structure (Fuller and Warren 1993;Fuller et al 2007;Hopkins and Kirby 2007). Open areas may be used as nocturnal feeding sites and are visited by roding male Woodcock when searching for females, while young woodlands, where trees are smaller and closer together, are used by females foraging with young (Hoodless and Hirons 2007).…”

“…These types of woodland habitat are among those most threatened by changes to woodland management occurring during the last century (Fuller and Warren 1993;Hopkins and Kirby 2007), but isolating the effect of habitat change is hindered since most studies have focused on a narrow range of study sites, and because many of these species are long-distant migrants, making it difficult to separate the effects of breeding habitat from the unmeasured factors affecting overwinter survival and migration (Goodenough 2014;Mallord et al 2016).…”