Dallington Forest

Also within

East Sussex County High Weald Scenic Area

Condition (Natural England)

Climate exposure

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

Habitats

Ancient woodland, Bracken scrub, Fast flowing river and stream

Geology & landscape

Rock Type: Sandstone

Landscape processes: Peatland / Mire

Description

Description This site is an area of ancient woodland which lies on fine grained silts, sandstones, shales and mudstones of the Ashdown beds. The main feature of the site is the ghyll woodland which contains a number of plants with an 'Atlantic' distribution. This habitat type and its associated flora occur only in The Weald and in the west of Britain. The steep sided ghyll has been created by the vigorous down cutting of Willingford Stream through the geological strata leaving a range of soil types and occasional outcrops of sandstone. The warm, moist microclimate of the ghyll has allowed the retention of a rich 'Atlantic' flora. A small plateau woodland is present in the north of the site and there is a small meadow adjacent to it. Three woodland types dominate the ghyll area. In the north beech Fagus sylvatica and pedunculate oak Quercus robur occur with holly Ilex aquifolium, hazel Corylus avellana, hornbeam Carpinus betulus, birch Betula pendula and the occasional yew Taxus baccata above a heathy ground flora of bracken Pteridium aquilinum and ling Calluna vulgaris. In the south beech is largely absent and oak, birch and hazel dominate above a ground flora of honeysuckle Lonicera periclymenum and bramble Rubus fruticosus. In the bottom of the valley there are stands of alder Alnus glutinosa above a rich ground flora of remote sedge Carex remota, yellow archangel Lamiastrum galeobdolon, gipsywort Lycopus europaeus and Sphagnum mosses. The following 'Atlantic' plants have been recorded from the ghyll area, wood fescue grass Festuca altissima, Cornish moneywort Sibthorpia europaea, hay scented fern Dryopteris aemula, ivy leaved bellflower, Wahlenbergia hederacea and the bryophytes liverworts and mosses Hyocomium armoricum, Hookeria lucens and Saccogyna viticulosa. The meadow in the north of the site contains plants such as ragged-robin Silene flos-cuculi and meadowsweet Filipendula ulmaria. The woodland behind it consists of oak, hazel, birch and hornbeam above a ground flora of wood sage Teucrium scorodonia.

Species mentioned

Insects to look out for

These moths, butterflies and beetles are known to feed on plants recorded at this site, and carry a notable UK conservation status — but a host-plant being present doesn't mean the insect has actually been recorded here. Treat this as "worth watching for," not a confirmed sighting.

Host-plant data: Cook et al. (2025), Traits data for the butterflies and macro-moths of Great Britain and Ireland, 2024, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology / Butterfly Conservation; and Padovani et al. (2020), Database of Insects and their Food Plants (DBIF), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (both Open Government Licence). Contains data supplied by UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology.

Plant communities