Warwickshire
From Wild Warwickshire
[edit] Introduction
Warwickshire is at the heart of England; it is 197,854ha in size and boasts a range of habitats. Much of the county was once part of the forests of Arden and Mercia unfortunately almost all of this woodland has since been lost. The landscape is essentially a rural one. At one time Coventry was within its borders but after it was moved into the West Midlands Warwickshire was left with no city. Main conurbations include Warwick and Leamington in the centre and Nuneaton and Bedworth to the North. Other key urban areas are Stratford upon Avon, Rugby, Henley in Arden and Shipston on Stour.
[edit] Description of the Counties Biogeography
Up until the 1940’s much of Warwickshire was traditionally farmed with a four-year rotation of root, oat/barley, grass ley and wheat crops (Harrison and Harrison, 2005). This system supported itself maintaining nutrient inputs and created a range of habitats for a variety of species. During the war and into the 1950’s much of the county became poorly managed marginal land reverted to permanent pastures, hedges overgrew and ditches silted up. As mechanisation stepped up a gear new agricultural opportunities were revealed. Flower rich grasslands, once inaccessible could now be worked. Hedges were removed to increase field sizes and room for this large machinery. Ditches were filled in and wetlands and ponds drained. Traditional rotations were abandoned as fertilisers, pesticides and insecticides boosted crop productivity (Harrison and Harrison, 2005).
In 2003 the biogeography of Warwickshire is a reflection of many of these changes. The county boasts 29% permanent grassland with 66% of its landmass being under cultivation mainly in the Dunsmore and Feldon regions. The biogeographical make up of Warwickshire can be seen in Figure 1 and is adapted from Harrison and Harrisons (2005) descriptions in ‘The New Birds of the West The Mease and Anker Lowlands are typified by Claylands, it is sparsely populated with arable farms with low hedges with few trees. The enclosures closely mirror their origins in the 18th and 19th century and are rectilinear. The landscape is punctuated by copses and spinneys and divided by ridges and streams. South-east is the High Cross Plateau. This region is upland and is the watershed between the Avon and Soar. Light well-drained soils give way to clays in the valleys. Fields are enclosed with hedges with few trees.
Across Coventry and Kenilworth down to Henley in Arden is the Arden Midland Plateau. Here the Alne, Avon, Arrow, Tame and Anker all flow through a matrix of Triassic mudstones and Arden sandstones. Much of the Forest is gone. The fields here are irregular with thick hedges some remnant of the forests. This region is the most densely populated and conurbated. The central north south region is the Dunsmore and Feldon region. This area is underlain with calcareous lias clays with patches of glacial gravels and acidic soils. The rivers Avon and Leam are the main water features. Midlands’.
Dunsmore is similar in character to Arden with acidic soils that once would have been heathland. Woodlands in and around Princethorpe form the counties greatest network of semi-natural woodland. The fields are flat and open and usually large and rectangular. Feldon is an open clay vale through, which the Leam and the Stour flow. The landscape has typical enclosures of regular fields.
To the west of Dunsmore and Feldon encompassing Warwick and Stratford upon Avon is the Severn and Avon Valleys region. This region has underlying Mercia mudstones yielding heavy clays. The Avon is the main watercourse and crosses the whole region. Enclosures are large and open and can be nutrient deficient.
The last region in Warwickshire is the Cotswold Fringe that edges the south and the south east borders of the county. This region is comprised of Jurassic hills and an extensive upland plateau. The Hills at Illmington and Long Compton are oolitic limestone with lias shales, silt stones and sandstones. The hilltops in this region are particularly noted as good observation points for spotting migratory birds.
[edit] References
Harrison, G and Harrison, J (2005) The New Birds of the West Midlands. WMBC
