In what ways are woodlands threatened in the UK and how does conservation manage threats?

Question 1

extinction

Answer 1

destroying species directly or indirectly (1 species every 20 minutes)

Question 2

coextintion

Answer 2

when one species becomes extinct, others that are reliant on it become extinct too

Question 3

modification

Answer 3

e.g. adding or removing species from an ecosystem

Question 4

alteration

Answer 4

increasing or decreasing elements in an ecosystem

Question 5

preservation

Answer 5

keeping an environment static and not allowing natural change

Question 6

felling licences from the Forest Commission

Answer 6

required for any woodland it doesn’t manage.

Question 7

protected landscapes

Answer 7

many ancient woodlands are now SSIS and preservation orders have been placed on individual rare trees.

Question 8

grants to farmers

Answer 8

used to create new and maintain existing woodland. Farmers are encouraged to plan new woodland through the environmental stewardship scheme and leave wide margins around the field for wildlife. 2001-2205, English woodland grant scheme provided £ to create 28262 ha of new woodland e.g Thames Chase in East London

Question 9

regulations and visitor codes

Answer 9

-recreational pressure in popular forests e.g. New Forest and Epping has enforced this

Question 10

Coppicing

Answer 10

cutting trees at ground level encourages stems or ‘spring’ to grow from the stump or ‘stool’ which is then harvested at regular intervals for timber and charcoal

Question 11

pollarding

Answer 11

cutting the branches at head height to prevent livestock eating the foliage and harvesting the shoots which grow from the trunk for fuel and timber

Question 12

wood grazing

Answer 12

grazing cattle, sheep and pigs beneath trees. increases species diversity

Question 13

creating glades=opening meadows

Answer 13

allows light to reach the woodland edge, increasing species diversity and leaving dead wood in place for saprophytes