Information AboutMoorland |
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Moorland or '''moor''' is a type of Habitat found in upland areas, characterised by Acid ic soils. Moorland habitats are most extensive in the Neotropics and Tropical Africa but also occur in small scattered locations in northern and western Europe , Northern Australia , North America , Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent . Most of the world's moorlands are very diverse ecosystems. The tiny areas of European moorlands however tend to be species-poor environments and often dominated by Heather . In the far more extensive moorlands of the tropics species diversity can be extremely high. Moorlands differ from typical heathland in being colder and much wetter, often with extensive Bog s, giving rise to a different mix of associated fauna. In Europe this fauna consists of bird species such as Red Grouse , Hen Harrier , Merlin , Golden Plover , Curlew , Sky Lark , Meadow Pipit , Whinchat , Ring Ouzel and Twite . Other species of course dominate in moorlands elsewhere. Reptiles are few due to the cooler conditions. In Europe only the Common Viper is frequent, though in other regions moorlands are commonly home to dozens of reptile species. Amphibians such as frogs are well represented in moorlands. When moorland is Overgrazed , woody vegetation is often lost, being replaced by coarse, unpalatable Grasses and Bracken , with a greatly reduced fauna. ]] ECOLOGY A variety of distinct '', 15 January 1998, pp 28-35 In more northerly latitudes, moorland is also found in lowland areas in the Scottish Highlands, Iceland and Norway ; in the far north where trees do not grow naturally, moorland grades into natural Tundra . NOTABLE MOORLANDS Notable areas of upland moorland in Britain include the Dark Peak , the Forest Of Bowland , the Lake District , the Pennines , Mid Wales , the Southern Uplands of Scotland, the Scottish Highlands and a few very small pockets in western Herefordshire .
There are numerous moorlands outside the UK; some other notable examples are:
CONSERVATION The small and unrepresentaive Anthropogenic moorland of Europe would slowly revert to other types of vegetation such as Woodland were it not for scrub and saplings being periodically removed, usually by Controlled Burning . This is of course not true for the vast majority of the world's moorlands. Mechanical cutting of the heather has been used in Europe, but it is important the material is removed to avoid smothering regrowth. In Europe it has been found that heather seeds germinate better if subject to the brief heat of controlled burning. In Europe if the heather and other vegetation is left for too long, a large volume of dry and combustible material builds up. This is may cause a Wildfire which may burn out a large area. However, generally moorland wildlife has evolved to cope with even major fires and are easily able to recover if such intense burnings are not too frequent. REFERENCES SEE ALSO |
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