Description
Q4 - What are the dominant soil types? (specify up to 3 types)
- Podzolic
- Peat soils
- Surface-water gley soils
Q5 - What Phase 1 habitat types are present? Only select the five most dominant types and, for each of these, specify below what percentage of the Aspect Area is made up of these.
- Dry Acid Heath
- Blanket Bog
- Acid/Neutral Flush
- Unimproved Acid Grassland
- Dry Heath/Acid Grassland Mosaic
Q6 - Does the area contain habitats of international importance?
Q7 - If yes, which habitats of international importance?
Q8 - Does the area contain BAP habitats?
Q9 - If yes, which BAP habitats?
- Upland Heathland
- Blanket Bog
Q10 - Does the area contain protected sites?
Q11 - If yes, which ones?
Q12 - Approximately what proportion of the Aspect Area is within the protected site?
Q13 - Does the area support important species?
Q14 - If yes, which species? (for each of the species, also note the source of information)
- A number of uncommon bryophyte species have been recorded from the area including fir club-moss Huperzia selago, alpine club-moss Diphasiastrum alpinum and the lichen, Cladonia impexa. Starry saxifrage Saxifraga stellaris occurs near its southern-most limit in Britain. Also a large range of upland birds use the area including Birds of prey include peregrine falcon, red kite, merlin, hen harrier, short-eared owl, kestrel and buzzard. Ring ouzel, golden plover, red grouse, common sandpiper, wheatear, whinchat and teal breed there, and Greenland whitefronted geese roost during the latter part of the winter on Bugeilyn, the best lake for aquatic plants and animals in the entire site.
Q15 - Are there any significant threat species present in abundance? (Field visit required)
Q16 - What other features significantly influence the biodiversity in this area?
- Streams
- Ponds
- Rock Outcrops
Q17 - Are any of these features in a very good condition? (Field visit required)
Q18 - Are any of these features in a poor condition? (Field visit required)
Q19 - What are the main land management activities taking place in the area? (Field visit required)
Q20 - Do any of the above appear to have an appreciable positive impact on biodiversity? (Field visit required)
Q21 - Do any of the above appear to have an appreciable negative impact on biodiversity? (Field visit required)
Q22 - Is the biodiversity in the area in any way threatened?
Q23 - Are there clear opportunities to improve the biodiversity aspect of this area?
Q24 - Summarise the key features that define this area's biodiversity character
- This is one of the most important upland areas for upland nature conservation in Wales, being of special interest for its upland vegetation type including acid grassland, blanket bog communities and dwarf-shrub heath. These support an important range of bird species. The Aspect Area is concurrent with the Plynlimon SSSI.
Condition
Recommendations
Q28 - Existing management
Q29 - Existing management remarks:
- Prior to 2008, habitats and species on Pumlumon Fawr and Pumlumon Arwystili were in poor condition, with heavy grazing encouraging the dominance of purple moor grass, mat grass and heath rush over heather and bilberry communities. Parts of the summit ridge were bare peat and stone.
After 11 years without grazing, much of the previous short acid grassland is now deep, moss-laden bilberry and cowberry heath, with scattered heather bushes appearing. The cover of heather and bog mosses is increasing in bogs, and purple moor grass and cotton grass are becoming less dominant. The heather is naturally layering in the wet climate and is not expected to become tall and leggy. In very exposed areas along the ridge tops, summit heath communities are developing, with thick mats of Racomitrium moss, and low lichen-rich and club-moss rich vegetation. In the more sheltered and lower slopes, there are occasional dense colonies of Greater woodrush and Western gorse.
Tree seedlings (mainly Rowan, but also scattered Grey Willow and Holly) have started to appear, even up to the summit ridge, perhaps the start of a natural tree-line, a long-lost habitat in Wales.
At higher altitudes the regeneration of arctic-alpine species has exceeded all expectations. From only two known plants of Dwarf Willow and scattered plants of Stiff Sedge, large colonies of both species are now growing and flowering well in places they were previously unknown. They are not new plants – they are probably very ancient – but were grazed down too low for botanists to find them. Both male and female willow plants are present, representing a potentially viable population. Intriguingly, only the male plants of Dwarf Willow are infected by another rare montane species: the rust fungus Melampsora arctica.
Q30 - Principal management recommendations
- Maintain current management
Q31 - Guideline
- Medium Term
- Long Term
- Long Term
Aspect Area Boundary
Q32 - To what level was this information site-surveyed?
Q33 - At 1:10,000, how much of the Aspect Area boundary is precise?
Q34 - What baseline information source was used for Aspect Area boundary mapping?
Q35 - If OS Data was used, what was the scale?
Q36 - What is the justification for the Aspect Area boundaries?
- To the north and east the boundary is the county boundary, to the south the boundary has been drawn against the change to ffridd land within CRDGNLH038 Ponterwyd upland grassland mosaic. To the west the boundary follows the watershed and the change to move improved uplands of CRDGNLH023 Disgwylfa upland mosaic.
Evaluation
Q37 - Evaluation Criteria: Priority Habitats
Q38 - Evaluation Criteria: Significance
Q39 - Evaluation Criteria: Opportunity
Q40 - Evaluation Criteria: Expansion rates
Q41 - Evaluation Criteria: Sensitivity
Q42 - Evaluation Criteria: Connectivity/Cohesion
Q43 - Evaluation Criteria: Habitat Evaluation
Q44 - Evaluation Criteria: Importance for key species
Q45 - Evaluation Criteria: Overall Evaluation Habitat and Species
Q45a - Justification of overall evaluation
- This is one of the most important upland areas for upland nature conservation in Wales, being of special interest for its upland vegetation type including acid grassland, blanket bog communities and dwarf-shrub heath. These support an important range of bird species. The area therefore has been graded as Outstanding.
Bibliography
Q46 - Sources and additional assessments
- Vexel 2006 aerial photography, Getmapping - Millenium Map digital aerial photography. CCW - Phase 1 Habitat vector GIS data set. Countryside Council for Wales Species Information, CCW SSSI Notification sheets for Ceredigion.
Assessment
Q47 - Additional Assessments
- Good example of an internationally important upland habitats present over a large continuous area which are likely to support a range of interesting species.
Q48 - Additional Comments
- Species records used in the study are not comprehensive and the absence of species in an area may well be an indication of incomplete records rather than a true lack, Land managers, developers, planners and other land users will need to satisfy themselves as to the occurrence of such species within the area if existing land management or management changes might affect these species in the future. A first step to procuring this data will be to consult with the local biodiversity records centre.
