Nance Wood

Also within

Cornwall County

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

Bracken scrub, Coppiced woodland

Geology & landscape

Geological Period: Devonian · Rock Type: Shale

Landscape processes: Coastal

Description

Nance Wood SSSI Description Nance Wood is a narrow strip of semi-natural woodland developed on steep north-facing slopes. The parent rock is Devonian shale, giving rise to soils which are predominantly acid and free-draining, although there are small pockets of more base-rich soils. The majority of the woodland is composed of almost pure sessile oak Quercus petraea, last actively coppiced some 40–60 years ago. Proximity to the sea has resulted in a low, wind-pruned canopy between four and six metres high. The ground flora consists of honeysuckle Lonicera periclymenum, bramble Rubus fruticosus, bracken Pteridium aquilinum and bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta, with scattered stands of greater woodrush Luzula sylvatica on steeper slopes. The shrub layer is composed of holly Ilex aquifolium, hazel Corylus avellana and hawthorn Crataegus monogyna. The southern arm of Nance Wood supports an area of ash-oak-sycamore coppice, with some hawthorn, blackthorn Prunus spinosa and a few wych elm Ulmus glabra. The site supports a good bryophyte flora, with 81 moss and 21 liverwort species recorded. Of particular interest are the mosses Hookeria lucens which shows a typically oceanic, west coast distribution, and the nationally rare species Pohlia filum and Aloina ambigua. The site is of particular importance for the presence of Irish spurge Euphorbia hyberna, one of the only 2 British localities for this Red Data Book species. The dwarf Quercus petraea coppice is of interest in its own right.

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