Monitoring of forest removal and groundworks to rejuvenate dunes at Newborough Warren – Ynys Llanddwyn SSSI. Part 1. Baseline monitoring. Report to Natural Resources Wales.

Jones, Laurence ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4379-9006; Wallace, Hillary; Giampieri, Cinzia. 2015 Monitoring of forest removal and groundworks to rejuvenate dunes at Newborough Warren – Ynys Llanddwyn SSSI. Part 1. Baseline monitoring. Report to Natural Resources Wales. Bangor, Wales, NERC/Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, 64pp. (Unpublished)

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Abstract/Summary

In order to re-establish mobile sand in the frontal dunes area of parts of Newborough Forest, a felling experiment has been proposed in two small zones. The West zone is just west of the rock ridge, the East zone lies between the main visitor car park and the Warren area. Within these zones, four treatments are being established to examine restoration success in different areas and with different techniques, with up to 8 replicate monitoring locations within each treatment. The ‘treatments’ are as follows: • Dune vegetation understory with sparse or stunted tree cover (T). Trees only to be removed, with dune understory left undisturbed. • Felling and Scraping (FS). Trees to be removed, stumps removed by grinding or de-stumping, litter layer and surface organic soil layer to be scraped and removed, to approximately 5 cm depth. • Felling only (F). Trees to be removed, but soils and litter layer remain undisturbed. These will be 10 x 10 m experimental plots located within treatment zone ‘FS’. • Unfelled control areas (UF). Locations behind or adjacent to felling zones, on similar substrate, and with similar tree canopy structure where possible. Additional samples were collected of beach sand (Beach), and at locations repeating an earlier soil and vegetation survey (Hill and Wallace, 1989) within the forest (Old Forest) and in the adjoining dunes (Old Dunes). At all locations except the beach, vegetation quadrats were established and soil samples taken to a depth of 0-15 cm, and extra samples 15-30 cm at a subset of locations. Soil characteristics (pH, %LOI, CaCO3) showed no statistical differences between treatments or between zones at baseline. Vegetation analysis showed no differences in species richness between the felling zones, but clear differences in species composition, and some indication of higher nutrient status (from vegetation Ellenberg N values) in zone East. There were also differences in species richness at baseline between some of the treatments, with higher species richness in the T plots compared with the F plots. These initial differences in species composition and soil fertility are likely to have an impact on future trajectories of vegetation development but can, to some extent, be accounted for in future statistical analysis and can also be used to guide interpretation of the restoration outcomes. It is recommended that further soil analysis is undertaken relatively soon after restoration to quantify the conditions under which vegetation is establishing in the different treatments. It is further recommended to monitor vegetation establishment within the permanent quadrats at intervals no greater than 5-years.

Item Type:	Publication - Report
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:	Emmett
Funders/Sponsors:	Natural Resources Wales
NORA Subject Terms:	Ecology and Environment Botany
Date made live:	05 Jul 2019 11:08 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/524091

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