Weston Big Wood
Also within
Condition (Natural England)
| Unit | Feature | Condition | Area (ha) | Assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ST454748 | — | Unfavourable Declining | 7.97 | 2023-04-05 |
| ST454751 | — | Unfavourable Declining | 15.69 | 2023-04-05 |
| ST457748 | — | Unfavourable Declining | 1.9 | 2023-04-12 |
| ST458751 | — | Unfavourable Declining | 12.1 | 2023-04-12 |
Habitats
Geology & landscape
Geological Period: Carboniferous · Rock Type: Carboniferous Limestone, Limestone
Description
Area, 37.48 ha. 92.61 ac. Description Weston Big Wood is a fine example of mixed deciduous woodland, with a rich variety of plant species. It occupies largely uncultivatable land in 2 parishes and its shape, name, the heterogeneous structure of the oaks, the presence of ancient woodland indicator species, together with historical records of the site, all suggest that it is the remnant of an ancient forest. The site occupies the plateau and steeply sloping flanks or a narrow ridge of Carboniferous Limestone and has well drained soils of calcareous to mildly acidic clay loams, overlying a layer of limestone fragments. The tree layer is dominated by pedunculate oak, which occurs as open canopy mature standards, together with coppice and maiden ash. There are discrete blocks containing abundant wild cherry, wych elm and lime. Trees of particular interest include the ancient woodland indicators small leaved lime Tilia cordata and wild service tree Sorbus torminalis both of which are locally abundant, the rare whitebeams Sorbus rupicola and S. eminens and a hybrid between common whitebeam and wild service Aelia ´ torminalis. The ground flora includes two colonies of the Red Data book species, purple gromwell Lithospermum purpurocaeruleum.
Species mentioned
Show the 3 species mentioned in the description, with red-list status| English name search for this in other sites |
Latin name search with Google |
IUCN / Red List | Type | Family |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| wild service | Aelia | Not listed in GB list | bug | pentatomidae |
| rock whitebeam | Sorbus rupicola | LC | tree | rosaceae |
| lime small leaved | Tilia cordata | LC | tree | malvaceae |
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.
| Species | Status | Via host-plant |
|---|---|---|
| The sprawler Asteroscopus sphinx |
Vulnerable | Tilia spp. |
| Pale brindled Phigalia pilosaria |
Vulnerable | Tilia spp. |
| September thorn Ennomos erosaria |
Near Threatened | Tilia spp. |
| Scarce hook-tip Sabra harpagula |
Near Threatened | Tilia cordata |
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.