Britain harbours fragments of temperate rainforest, a globally rare habitat, and with concerted conservation efforts, they could thrive.
FOR most of my life, I didn’t realise that Britain has rainforests. But then, two years ago, I moved to Devon. Exploring woods in forgotten valleys and steep-sided gorges, I found places exuberant with life.
I witnessed branches dripping with mosses and trees festooned with lichens and liverworts. Even in winter, when deciduous trees lose their leaves, these woodlands were green with a verdant luminosity due to the plethora of species clinging to them. My adventures took me to places that felt like green cathedrals. Sunlight picked out the arches of tree trunks with their haloes of moss.
I was enraptured. Surely, I thought, such rich woodland belongs in the tropics, not the UK. But it is true. The British Isles harbour fragments of a globally rare habitat: temperate rainforest. While tropical rainforests are characterised by being rainy and hot, temperate rainforests are rainy but cool. They are rarer than the tropical variety, covering just 1 per cent of the world’s surface. They can’t match Amazonia for scale, but these habitats nonetheless teem with species and may be important carbon sinks.
Tragically, however, the British Isles have lost most of their rainforests to deforestation. In England, Scotland and Wales, the remaining fragments total at most 130,000 hectares. But there is hope for their future.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Willemse stars as Springboks beat wretched England 27-13South Africa half-backs Damian Willemse and Faf de Klerk put England to the sword on Saturday with a relentless drum beat of drop goals, penalties and try assists in a 27-13 victory, that ended the hosts' patchy autumn series on a decided downer.
Read more »
World Cup 2022: The U.S. Flashes Potential in a Disappointing Draw with England“The real pressure in this World Cup has been not to win but to impress, to play with promise and some style,” louisahthomas writes.
Read more »
Car plows into crowded Christmas market in EnglandA car drove into a Christmas market crowded with hundreds of people in the English town of Congleton Saturday, according to a report.
Read more »
USA-England World Cup Match Draws Record U.S. Viewership for Men’s Soccer GameThe USA vs. England World Cup game that ended in a 0-0 draw was a big draw for Fox Sports on Friday, pulling in more than 15.3 million viewers to a set a record for the most-watched men’s soc…
Read more »
World Cup 2022: USMNT's draw with England shatters American viewership recordThe U.S. men's national team shattered a viewership record on Friday with its draw against England at the World Cup.
Read more »