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| *****SWAAG_ID***** | 720 |
| Date Entered | 03/05/2013 |
| Updated on | 03/05/2013 |
| Recorded by | Tim Laurie |
| Category | Tree Site Record |
| Record Type | Botanical HER |
| Site Access | Public Access Land |
| Record Date | 02/05/2013 |
| Location | Walden Moor. Deepdale Gill and Deepdale Scar |
| Civil Parish | Burton cum Walden |
| Brit. National Grid | SD 9725 797o |
| Altitude | 430m to 490m |
| Geology | Main Limestone strata down to the Underset Limestone. |
| Record Name | Walden Moor. Depleted woodland in Deepdale Gill and on Deepdale Head Scar. |
| Record Description | Walden Moor. Depleted woodland in Deepdale Gill and on Deepdale Head Scar with a relict limestone woodland community now limited to a few rowans, stunted hazel in the Gill at 440m elevation (see photos) hawthorns, blackthorns and downy rose. Dog's Mercury (Mercurialis perennis) is surprisingly widespread, growing on cliff ledges by the stream and on the scar and this indicator points to the one time presence of a full limestone ashwood community here. Ferns are few. Maidenhair spleenwort and wall rue being the only species seen.
The fact that the limestone scars are not vertical and therefor accessible to rabbits would account for the absence of tree regeneration. |
| Geographical area | Wensleydale |
| Species | Rowan. Hazel (stunted bushes on streamside cliff in Gill at 440m). Hawthorn. Blackthorn. Downy rose. |
| Common / Notable Species | Dogs mercury. Maidenhair spleenwort. |
| Tree and / or Stem Girth | All trees stunted and wind coppiced. |
| Additional Notes | In contrast to the waterfall ravines and limestone scars at the heads of tributary streams of Swaledale and of the Tees-Greta Uplands which generally support species rich relict woodland often with yew, juniper and aspen, the geologically very similar ravines of Wensleydale support very depleted, species poor relict woodland. Yew is present only at one location on the limestone scars of Wensleydale and is generally distributed throughout Swaledale (except in the Main Dale between Muker and Marrick. Juniper does not exist in Wensleydale and is present at more than 50 locations in Swaledale, see Laurie 2012. Aspen is present in Swaledale at more than thirty locations in Swaledale. Aspen is rare in Upper Wensleydale, being present only in hedgerows at lower elevations and very rarely seen in the upper Gills. |
| Image 1 ID | 4392 Click image to enlarge |
| Image 1 Description | Deepdale Gill at 440m elevation. Stunted hazel, rowan and downy rose on the low cliff above the stream. |  |
| Image 2 ID | 4393 Click image to enlarge |
| Image 2 Description | Deepdale Gill at 440m elevation. Stunted hazel, rowan and downy rose on the low cliff above the stream. |  |
| Image 3 ID | 4394 Click image to enlarge |
| Image 3 Description | View upward from the Gill towards towards Deepdale Head Scar. |  |
| Image 4 ID | 4395 Click image to enlarge |
| Image 4 Description | Two isolated small rowans with a few hawthorn bushes are the only surviving remnants of the woodland which once existed here. |  |
| Image 5 ID | 4396 Click image to enlarge |
| Image 5 Description | Recording at these cliff locations requires great care and these scars should not be climbed a they are not as easy to climb as they seem. |  |
