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12-524: The Dorset Heaths form an important area of heathland within the Poole Basin in southern England . Much of the area is protected. According to Natural England , who have designated the Dorset Heaths as National Character Area 135, the heathlands cover an area of 61,662 hectares, whose boundary runs from Bockhampton and Warmwell in the west via Wimborne Minster to Fordingbridge in

24-667: Is favoured where climatic conditions are typically hard and dry, particularly in summer, and soils acidic, of low fertility, and often sandy and very free-draining; a mire may occur where drainage is poor, but usually is only small in extent. Heaths are dominated by low shrubs, 20 centimetres (8 in) to 2 metres (7 feet) tall. Heath vegetation can be extremely plant-species rich, and heathlands of Australia are home to some 3,700 endemic or typical species in addition to numerous less restricted species. The fynbos heathlands of South Africa are second only to tropical rainforests in plant biodiversity with over 7,000 species. In marked contrast,

36-544: Is the silver-studded blue butterfly, Plebejus argus . Anthropogenic heath habitats are a cultural landscape that can be found worldwide in locations as diverse as northern and western Europe , the Americas , Australia , New Zealand , Madagascar and New Guinea . These heaths were originally made or expanded by centuries of human clearance of the natural forest and woodland vegetation, by grazing and burning. In some cases this clearance went so far that parts of

48-632: The tree pipit . In Australia the heathland avian fauna is dominated by nectar-feeding birds such as honey-eaters and lorikeets , although numerous other birds from emus to eagles are also common in Australian heathlands. The birds of the South African fynbos include sunbirds , warblers and siskins. Heathlands are also an excellent habitat for insects including ants , moths, butterflies and wasps; many species are restricted entirely to it. One such example of an organism restricted to heathland

60-556: The NCA was 446,296 as of 2001 with an increase to 466,626 following the 2011 census. [1] The Dorset Heaths are home to a large number of protected areas including: Heathland Heaths are widespread worldwide but are fast disappearing and considered a rare habitat in Europe. They form extensive and highly diverse communities across Australia in humid and sub-humid areas where fire regimes with recurring burning are required for

72-504: The average height is just 32 metres (105 ft). Major rivers include the Frome , Stour , Moors , Piddle , Sherford , Allen , Corfe and Dorset Avon . The largest settlement within the Dorset Heaths is the extensive South East Dorset conurbation , this includes the large towns of Poole , Bournemouth and Christchurch . Other significant Satellite towns are Wareham , Fordingbridge and Wimborne Minster . The total population for

84-428: The discontinuation of traditional management techniques, such as grazing and burning, that mediated the landscapes. Some are also threatened by urban sprawl . Anthropogenic heathlands are maintained artificially by a combination of grazing and periodic burning (known as swailing), or (rarely) mowing; if not so maintained, they are rapidly recolonised by forest or woodland. The recolonising tree species will depend on what

96-757: The far northeast. It then turns southwards to Hengistbury Head , before following the coastline to Studland and Brownsea Island then finally heading westwards - north of South Purbeck (with the Purbeck Hills ) and the Weymouth Lowlands - to the Warmwell area. The character of the Dorset Heaths contrasts strongly with its neighbouring natural regions . Undulating lowland heath with heather , pines and gorse alternates with exposed, open, large-scale farmland , woodland and scrub . Blocks of conifers form locally prominent landmarks. Apart from

108-765: The heathland have given way to open spots of pure sand and sand dunes , with a local climate that, even in Europe, can rise to temperatures of 50 °C (122 °F) in summer, drying the sand spot bordering the heathland and further raising its vulnerability for wildfires. Referring to heathland in England, Oliver Rackham says, "Heaths are clearly the product of human activities and need to be managed as heathland; if neglected they turn into woodland". The conservation value of these human-made heaths has become much more appreciated due to their historical cultural value as habitats; consequently, most heathlands are protected. However they are also threatened by tree incursion because of

120-619: The maintenance of the heathlands. Even more diverse though less widespread heath communities occur in Southern Africa . Extensive heath communities can also be found in the Texas chaparral , New Caledonia , central Chile , and along the shores of the Mediterranean Sea . In addition to these extensive heath areas, the vegetation type is also found in scattered locations across all continents, except Antarctica . Heathland

132-443: The major Poole - Bournemouth - Christchurch conurbation on the coast, much of the area is sparsely populated with scattered settlements and a few small villages and towns. Valleys are flat-bottomed and open with floodplain pastures. There is an outer perimeter of low, rolling hills marking the transition to chalk downland . The land within the Dorset Heaths rises to a maximum of 193 metres (633 ft) at Creech Barrow Hill , but

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144-414: The tiny pockets of heathland in Europe are extremely depauperate with a flora consisting primarily of heather ( Calluna vulgaris ), heath ( Erica species) and gorse ( Ulex species). The bird fauna of heathlands are usually cosmopolitan species of the region. In the depauperate heathlands of Europe, bird species tend to be more characteristic of the community, and include Montagu's harrier and

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