Designated habitat features on SSSIs
The majority of SSSIs in Wales (82%) have been
notified for one or more habitat features – making a total of 2843
features.
Most habitat features comprise readily identifiable and
distinctive units defined on the basis of their characteristic
plant or animal communities as well as other criteria such as soil
type or altitude.
There are 56 different terrestrial habitats including freshwater
habitats, such as lowland heath, blanket bog, saltmarsh and
standing water, and 22 different intertidal marine habitats, such
as rockpools and saline lagoons. These have been summarized
below:
| Broad habitat groups |
No of compon-ent
habitat features
in group |
Total no of
habitat features on SSSIs |
No of
SSSIs where
these habitat features
occur |
| Terrestrial (including freshwater) habitats |
| Fen, marsh and swamp |
6 |
625 |
378 |
| Broadleaved, mixed and yew woodland |
5 |
520 |
410 |
| Neutral grassland |
1 |
241 |
224 |
| Dwarf shrub heath |
3 |
198 |
152 |
| Acid grassland |
1 |
190 |
184 |
| Standing open water and canals |
7 |
122 |
111 |
| Supralittoral rock (inc cliffs, coastal grassland & coastal
heathland) |
3 |
120 |
56 |
| Bracken |
1 |
105 |
104 |
| Rivers and streams |
5 |
104 |
88 |
| Inland rock |
3 |
90 |
78 |
| Bogs |
2 |
73 |
61 |
| Calcareous grassland |
1 |
72 |
62 |
| Supralittoral sediment (inc sand dunes and shingle) |
4 |
65 |
42 |
| Saltmarsh |
1 |
35 |
34 |
| Improved grassland |
2 |
17 |
15 |
| Coniferous woodland |
1 |
8 |
8 |
| Arable and horticultural |
3 |
4 |
4 |
| Boundary and linear features |
2 |
3 |
3 |
| Marine habitats |
| Littoral rock |
14 |
165 |
67 |
| Littoral sediment |
6 |
39 |
22 |
| Inshore sublittoral sediment |
7 |
14 |
13 |
| Inshore sublittoral rock |
2 |
9 |
9 |