Chiltern Escarpment North CTA (Conservation Target Area) the Steepest Parts of the Escarpment Running North from Swyncombe

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Chiltern Escarpment North CTA (Conservation Target Area) The steepest parts of the escarpment running north from Swyncombe. At the northern end includes a section of the plateau and part of a dipslope valley to encompass extensive areas of woodland continuous with woodland on the escapement. Joint Character Area : Chilterns Landscape Types: Wooded Estate Slopes and Valley Sides. Geology: Mainly chalk but includes some clay-with-flints on the plateau to the north. Topography: A steep west facing escarpment and some flat plateau land to the north Area of CTA: 1443 hectares Biodiversity: • Chalk grassland: extensive SSSI chalk grasslands and a few smaller areas including Oakley Hill Nature Reserve. Associated with these areas are small areas of chalk heath and juniper scrub. • Woodland: Extensive beech and yew woodland, including one area of yew woodland, and lowland mixed deciduous woodland, especially at the northern end and at Watlington Park. • Parkland: Watlington Park supports important parkland habitat.

Access : Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve, National Trust land at Watlington Hill, BBOWT reserves at Chinnor Hill and Oakley Hill, numerous bridleways and footpaths. Archaeology : Oxfordshire Biodiversity Action Plan Targets associated with this CTA: 1. Chalk (lowland calcareous) grassland – management 1, restoration and creation (including juniper conservation and positive management of scrub communities). 2. Woodland – management and restoration. 3. Wood-pasture and parkland (and veteran trees) – management. 4. Lowland Heathland (chalk heath) and Lowland dry acid grassland – management. 1 “Management” implies both maintaining the quantity, and maintaining and improving the quality of existing BAP habitat and incorporates the following target definitions: “Maintaining extent” and “Achieving Condition”. Chinnor Postcombe Kingston Blount

Lewknor

Watlington

1 Area of BAP habitat present in CTA (from TVERC BAP Habitat GIS layer 5/2010) and 2015 BAP Habitat Targets for this CTA Coastal Lowland Lowland Wood - Chilterns Lowland Lowland and Eutrophic Lowland Lowland Beech Mixed Wet Pasture Traditional Calcareous Dry Acid Floodplain Standing Reedbeds Escarpment Meadows Fens and Yew Deciduous Woodland and Orchards Grassland Grassland Grazing Waters North CTA Woodland Woodland Parkland Marsh Area of BAP Habitat in 115.9 1.4 8.5 271.4 311.5 68.4 0.6 CTA (ha) % of CTA 8.0 0.1 0.6 18.8 21.6 4.7 0.0 area

% of county 15.8 2.9 0.9 34.3 6.8 3.7 0.2 resource Wood - Coastal 2015 Eutrophic Pasture Lowland Lowland and Traditional Lowland Standing Lowland and BAP Calcareous Dry Acid Floodplain Reedbeds Native Woodland Orchards - Meadows Waters – Fens Parkland No targets targets Grassland Grassland Grazing No targets Targets not for 2015 Marsh for 2015 divided by (hectares) CTA Maintenance (to be ------determined) Achieving Condition (to be ------determined) a 59 (with Restoration Central and - - 8 - - South Central) a 61 (with Creation Central and - - - - South Central) a Joint figure for Chilterns Escarpment CTAs: North, Central and South Central.