Cliffs and screes are found mostly around the coast and in the mountains in Wales. Cliff ledges and crevices provide a refuge for rare wildlife, notably for Peregrine falcons and iconic species of plant, such as the Snowdon lily (Gagea serotina) and yellow whitlow grass (Draba aizoides). Scree and boulder habitats can also be important for uncommon ferns, saxifrages, bryophytes and lichens.
Cliffs, boulder fields and screes
Cliff ledge and crevice habitats
Cliff ledges and crevices are important for a range of species. The cliff ledges in the Snowdonia mountains host a number of locally and nationally rare species, including the Snowdon lily (Gagea serotina). Similarly, the ledges on the limestone in South Gower host the locally abundant, but nationally rare, yellow whitlow-grass (Draba aizoides) along with…
Boulder fields and screes
Boulder fields and screes are important for the chasmophytic flora present, which in Wales usually refers to the pteridophyte flora, e.g. species such as brittle bladder-fern (Cystopteris fragilis), green spleenwort (Asplenium viride) and parsley fern (Cryptogramma crispa). These habitats are difficult to survey or monitor on the ground but are ideally suited to drone survey.