Berwickshire Coast (Intertidal)

Also within

Berwickshire County

Condition (NatureScot)

Climate exposure

This is about exposure to a nationwide pressure this habitat type carries — not a verdict on this site's own management.

Geology & landscape

Geological Feature: Cave / Cavern · Geological Period: Carboniferous, Devonian, Silurian · Rock Type: Carboniferous Limestone, Limestone, Sandstone

Landscape processes: Coastal, Karst

Birds & fish recorded

Birds

Description

Berwickshire Coast (Intertidal) This is an intertidal site extending between Mean High Water Springs and Mean Low Water Springs, including offshore intertidal rocks and islets, from Scruffy Hole at the north end of the site, 2.5 km west of Fast Castle, to the national border in the south. Certain bays and all harbours are excluded. The site supports a complex of extensive and diverse littoral reef habitats of international importance associated with good examples of partly submerged sea caves. The varied nature of the reefs and caves is partly due to the wide range of physical features present along the coastline, especially wave exposure from all directions, strong tidal currents, and a variety of rock types including Silurian shales, Old Ref Sandstone, Devonian Andesites, Vent Agglomerates and Carboniferous Limestone, a relatively unusual marine substrate in Britain. The littoral zone reefs support a diversity of marine biotopes in marked zonation, determined by structural aspects including near vertical cliffs, ridges, gullies and overhangs, grading to extensive rock pool systems, boulder and cobble shores, the majority being very species rich. To the south, shores are characterised more by wave cut platforms with large boulders. At least fourteen caves are present and show varied structure determined by rock type. They support several reef biotopes which also occur on reef outside the caves. Inner cave areas are characterised by specific shaded faunal assemblages similar to reef crevice fauna, together with lichen and algal communities. The site exhibits excellent examples of representative North Sea marine communities, characteristic of the wide range of habitats found, with pronounced representation of northern species. The biotopes of greatest significance range from upper shore, supralittoral rock with yellow and grey lichens through exposed and very steep upper shore rock with Verrucaria and barnacles, into exposed eulittoral rock with mussels, red algal turfs of Mastocarpus stellatus, Osmundea pinnatifida, and Himanthalia elongata and barnacle mosaics. These become mixed with the algae Fucus spiralis, F.vesiculosus and Ascophyllum nodosum in more moderately exposed to sheltered upper to mid shore locations. The lower shore eulittoral biotopes are represented by high quality examples of very steep to vertical rock with red algal turfs mainly of Osmundea pinnatifida and Chondrus crispus, the kelp Alaria esculenta and sponges, especially in overhanging situations and gullies. This contrasts with eulittoral boulder shore characterised by Fucus serratus. Other lower shore areas support excellent examples of boulder-floored and bedrock pools with coralline crusts and the mollusc Littorina littorea in shallower pools, with the algae Corallina officinalis and Fucus serratus. Kelp beds of Laminaria digitata also occur in these locations, and merge into the beds of L.hyperborea and L.saccharina in the deeper sublittoral fringe. The site supports good examples of epifaunal assemblages, especially where overhangs and crevices occur, and these are characterised by sponges, hydroids, colonial ascidians (sea squirts) and littorinid gastropods. Vertical rock surfaces are characterised by limpets, barnacles and dog whelks with dense mussel aggregations especially in the lower eulittoral zone. Several faunal species of interest are recorded from the area, but nationally rare species occur only in the sublittoral, some of which may extend into the sublittoral fringe. The Bryozoan Crisularia purpurotincta is the only nationally rare species recorded here that occurs both in shallow sublittoral and low waters. This is a new site overlaying the intertidal portions of St Abb’s Head to Fast Castle SSSI and Burnmouth Coast SSSI and continuously including the un-notified intertidal area from Eyemouth to St Abbs. The site is contiguous with the Northumberland Shore SSSI (England) The site is contiguous with the Northumbria Coast Special Protection Area (SPA). Part of the site is designated as part of the St Abb’s Head to Fast Castle Special Protection Area for the breeding seabird assemblage, breeding guillemot, herring gull, kittiwake, razorbill and shag. Part of the site is designated as part of the St Abb’s Head to Fast Castle Special Area of Conservation for vegetated sea cliffs Part of the site is designated as part of the Berwickshire & North Northumberland Coast Special Area of Conservation for the habitats and species listed below: Grey seal Halichoerus grypus Shallow inlets and bays Intertidal mudflats and sandflats Reefs Sea caves

Species mentioned