Woldingham & Oxted Downs
Condition (Natural England)
| Unit | Feature | Condition | Area (ha) | Assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TQ360534 | — | Unfavourable Recovering | 7.43 | 2013-09-30 |
| TQ362532 | — | Favourable | 4.79 | 2008-09-25 |
| TQ365549 | — | Unfavourable Recovering | 14.43 | 2013-07-01 |
| TQ366536 | — | Favourable | 13.33 | 2013-06-18 |
| TQ368535 | — | Favourable | 1.68 | 2008-09-25 |
| TQ369539 | — | Favourable | 26.78 | 2013-06-18 |
| TQ370544 | — | Unfavourable Recovering | 14.19 | 2013-06-18 |
| TQ370546 | — | Favourable | 7.46 | 2013-06-18 |
| TQ371536 | — | Favourable | 3.26 | 2008-11-04 |
| TQ374539 | — | Unfavourable Recovering | 18.37 | 2013-07-01 |
| TQ375561 | — | Favourable | 5.19 | 2020-08-07 |
| TQ384544 | — | Favourable | 3.21 | 2013-07-01 |
| TQ387544 | — | Unfavourable Recovering | 8.33 | 2013-07-01 |
Habitats
Geology & landscape
Rock Type: Chalk
Description
Description Woldingham and Oxted Downs Site of Special Scientific Interest is situated to the south of the village of Woldingham and comprises a large area of downland on the scarp and dip slopes of the North Downs where these reach their greatest height in Surrey. The site includes rich chalk grassland, scrub and mature and secondary woodland supporting many species of characteristic plants and animals, a number of which are rare. Soils of the site are derived mostly from the underlying chalk except where plateau deposits overlie the chalk on the crest of the Downs. Chalk grassland has developed over hundreds of years of traditional grazing management and once covered most of the North Downs. It is now becoming severely reduced in area by modern agricultural, industrial and housing development and many remaining areas are becoming overgrown with scrub where grazing has ceased. This process has resulted in a loss of at least 71 percent of chalk grassland in Britain between 1934 and 1972. This site retains several large areas of rich chalk grassland, as well as many smaller areas now surrounded by scrub. Where the turf is grazed short by stockor rabbits, the sward is dominated by red and sheep's fescues Festuca rubra and Festuca ovina together with quaking grass Briza media, yellow oat grass Trisetum flavescens, purging flax Linum catharticum, bee orchid Ophrys apifera, thyme Thymus praecox, common centaury Centaurium erythraea, yellow wort Blackstonia perfoliata and early gentian Gentianella anglica, a plant found only in Britain. Where the sward is taller, it is dominated by upright brome Bromus erectus, wood false brome Brachypodium sylvaticum and tor grass Brachypodium pinnatum. Other plants include salad burnet Poterium sanguisorba, oxeye daisy Leucanthemum vulgare, common spotted orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii and greater butterfly orchid Platanthera chlorantha, which grows in one of its largest Surrey colonies in the north east of the site. Scrub occurs throughout the site and is composed of hawthorn Crataegus monogyna, dogwood Cornus sanguinea, whitebeam Sorbus aria, wayfaring tree Viburnum lantana, wild privet Ligustrum vulgare and spindle Euonymus europaeus. The ground vegetation is composed of dog's mercury Mercurialis perennis with occasional twayblade orchid Neottia ovata. In many areas of the site scrub has developed further into secondary woodland. On Chaldon's Common the sandy acidic soil supports open oak Quercus robur and birch Betula pendula woodland, where the scarce blue pimpernel Anagallis arvensis ssp. foemina occurs. Elsewhere thin chalky soils support sycamore Acer pseudoplatanus, ash Fraxinus excelsior and hawthorn woodland with a ground vegetation of dog's mercury, bramble Rubus fruticosus and ivy Hedera helix. Some areas of woodland are more mature, such as great Church Wood, which is dominated by ash, oak and hazel Corylus avellana, with a rich groundlayer including bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta and the Surrey rarity herb paris Paris quadrifolia. Hanging Wood is dominated by ash and field maple Acer campestre and also has a rich flora including nettle leaved bell flower Campanula trachelium and sanicle Sanicula europaea, whilst a beech Fagus sylvatica hanger at Whistler's Steep supports the scarce plants stinking hellebore Helleborus foetidus and mezereon Daphne mezereum. The south facing slopes and sheltered patches of grassland surrounded by scrub support a rich invertebrate fauna. The rufous and stripe winged grasshoppers Gomphocerippus rufus and Stenobothrus lineatus, the Roman snail Helix pomatia and a hoverfly Microdon devius are among the rare species which occur here.
Species mentioned
Show the 45 species mentioned in the description, with red-list statusPlant communities
W20 — Montane scrub
Salix lapponum-Luzula sylvatica scrub
Show 107 indicator speciesSalix arbuscula, Salix cinerea, Salix lapponum, Salix myrsinites, Salix phylicifolia, Salix reticulata, Empetrum nigrum, Calluna vulgaris, Salix lanata, Vaccinium myrtillus, Vaccinium uliginosum, Carex atrata, Carex bigelowii, Carex binervis, Carex flacca, Luzula multiflora, Luzula sylvatica, Huperzia selago, Selaginella selaginoides, Aulacomnium palustre, Mnium hornum, Philonotis fontana, Plagiomnium undulatum, Rhizomnium punctatum, Dicranum bonjeanii, Dicranum majus, Dicranum scoparium, Fissidens adianthoides, Racomitrium lanuginosum, Calliergonell cuspidatum, Ctenidium molluscum, Hylocomium splendens, Hypnum callichroum, Hypnum cupressiforme, Palustriella commutatum, Plagiothecium denticulatum, Plagiothecium undulatum, Pleurozium schreberi, Ptilium crista-castrensis, Rhytidiadelphus loreus, Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus, Rhytidiadelphus triquetrus, Sanionia uncinata, Scorpidium revolvens, Thuidium tamariscinum, Atrichum undulatum, Polytrichastrum alpinum, Sphagnum capillifolium, Sphagnum fallax, Sphagnum girgensohnii, Sphagnum palustre, Sphagnum russowii, Sphagnum squarrosum, Sphagnum subnitens, Sphagnum teres, Barbilophozia barbata, Chiloscyphus polyanthos, Diplophyllum albicans, Lophocolea bidentata, Plagiochila porelloides, Ptilidium ciliare, Scapania undulata, Cladonia squamosa, Peltigera canina, Angelica sylvestris, Caltha palustris, Hieraclium spp., Saussurea alpina, Solidago virgaurea, Campanula rotundifolia, Succisa pratensis, Valeriana officinalis, Rhodiola rosea, Vaccinium vitis-idaea, Thymus praecox, Epilobium anagallidifolium, Dactylorhiza viridis, Euphrasia officinalis, Rhinanthus minor, Oxalis acetosella, Oxyria digyna, Polygonum viviparum, Rumex acetosa, Anemone nemorosa, Ranunculus acris, Thalictrum alpinum, Alchemilla alpina, Alchemilla glabra, Filipendula ulmaria, Geum rivale, Galium boreale, Galium saxatile, Saxifraga aizoides, Saxifraga hypnoides, Saxifraga oppositifolia, Saxifraga stellaris, Viola riviniana, Agrostis canina, Agrostis capillaris, Anthoxanthum odoratum, Deschampsia cespitosa, Deschampsia flexuosa, Festuca ovina, Festuca rubra, Nardus stricta, Dryopteris dilatata, Phegopteris connectilis
W21 — Hedgerow scrub, Mixed scrub
Crataegus monogyna-Hedera helix scrub
Show 81 indicator speciesHedera helix, Salix cinerea, Acer pseudoplatanus, Ilex aquifolium, Betula pendula, Corylus avellana, Fagus sylvatica, Quercus robur, Fraxinus excelsior, Malus sylvestris, Sorbus aria, Taxus baccata, Ulmus glabra, Ulmus procera, Sambucus nigra, Viburnum lantana, Euonymus europaeus, Cornus sanguinea, Juniperus communis, Ligustrum vulgare, Clematis vitalba, Rhamnus cathartica, Crataegus laevigata, Crataegus monogyna, Prunus spinosa, Juncus effusus, Plagiomnium undulatum, Brachythecium rutabulum, Kindbergia praelonga, Rhynchostegium confertum, Tamus communis, Heracleum sphondylium, Torilis japonica, Arum maculatum, Arctium minus, Cirsium arvense, Lonicera periclymenum, Moehringia trinervia, Silene dioica, Stellaria graminea, Stellaria holostea, Stellaria media agg., Calystegia sepium, Mercurialis perennis, Geranium robertianum, Iris foetidissima, Glechoma hederacea, Lamium purpureum, Origanum vulgare, Stachys sylvatica, Teucrium scorodonia, Allium ursinum, Hyacinthoides non-scripta, Circaea lutetiana, Rumex sanguineus, Anemone nemorosa, Ranunculus repens, Fragaria vesca, Geum urbanum, Potentilla sterilis, Poterium sanguisorba, Rosa arvensis, Rosa canina, Rubia peregrina, Rubus fruticosus agg., Galium aparine, Urtica dioica, Viola riviniana, Anisantha sterilis, Arrhenatherum elatius, Brachypodium pinnatum, Brachypodium sylvaticum, Bromopsis erecta, Dactylis glomerata, Elytrigia repens, Holcus lanatus, Holcus mollis, Poa trivialis, Asplenium scolopendrium, Pteridium aquilinum, Dryopteris filix-mas
W22 — Hedgerow scrub, Mixed scrub
Prunus spinosa-Rubus fruticosus scrub
Show 49 indicator speciesHedera helix, Acer campestre, Corylus avellana, Ulex europaeus, Prunus spinosa, Plagiomnium undulatum, Brachythecium rutabulum, Eurhynchium striatum, Kindbergia praelonga, Thuidium tamariscinum, Atrichum undulatum, Lophocolea bidentata, Achillea millefolium, Cardamine flexuosa, Lonicera periclymenum, Moehringia trinervia, Silene dioica, Silene uniflora, Stellaria media agg., Mercurialis perennis, Geranium robertianum, Stachys sylvatica, Teucrium scorodonia, Hyacinthoides non-scripta, Oxalis acetosella, Digitalis purpurea, Plantago lanceolata, Veronica chamaedrys, Armeria maritima, Rumex acetosa, Filipendula ulmaria, Geum urbanum, Rosa canina, Rubus fruticosus agg., Rubus idaeus, Galium aparine, Urtica dioica, Viola riviniana, Agrostis capillaris, Brachypodium sylvaticum, Dactylis glomerata, Festuca rubra, Holcus lanatus, Holcus mollis, Poa trivialis, Asplenium scolopendrium, Pteridium aquilinum, Dryopteris borreri, Dryopteris filix-mas