About the reserve

The southern third of the site contains the remains of an old plantation, while the northern two thirds is made up of tall old heathland growing on 80cm of peat.

Heather should show a cyclical succession where pioneer, building, senescent, and degenerating stages give way to one another over a 30-50 year period. Studies on this site, since 1976, indicates that there is very little heather regeneration, but instead a considerable successional pressure. Western Gorse has invaded the site followed by Birch, Rowan and Willow with a further threat from Beech.

The senescent Heather bushes show a classic sequence of lichens and bryophytes around their bases, including 7 species of Parmelia, 2 Ramalina, and Unsea florida, the latter indicating particularly clean air quality. Narrow buckler fern (Dryopteris carthusiana) is also present.

There is also an unusual fungi association to be found. False Truffle Elaphonomyces muricatus occur in the leaf litter amongst the Birch, together with their fungal parasite the Club fungus Cordiceps ophioglossoides, whose striking fruiting bodies show up amongst the carpet of green moss, Dicranum scoparium. Invertebrates include the Emperor moth.