Solent Habitats

The Solent Forum has prepared a Solent Habitat Information Pack which includes a series of habitat sheets for all the coastal and marine habitats found in the Solent. These can be downloaded from the publications section of the Solent Forum website. They explain what the habitat is, the species supported, the social and economic value, the locations in which it is found around the Solent and the current issues, threats and opportunities. This work has been led by the Forum's Natural Environment Group.

Coastal Habitats

Saltmarshes
Maritime Cliffs
Sand Dunes
Saline Lagoons
Mudflats
Vegetated Shingle
Coastal Grazing Marsh

'Chichester Harbour is the seventh largest expanse of saltmarsh in Great Britain, but like many natural environments, faces both manmade and natural threats.'

Marine Habitats

Seagrass
Sheltered muddy gravels
Subtidal reefs
Intertidal reefs
Sub-littoral sands and gravels

"Mudflats might not sound exciting but are actually a biological powerhouse, a key habitat providing essential services for countless species, supporting biodiversity and supporting us. As mudflats build up, they capture all manner of organic material from the water column which feeds bacteria, fungi and microscopic algae that teem within the mud. Millions of small invertebrates burrow into the mud or forage on its surface, some of these animals, for example sea bass, clams and oysters, can even feed us!

The food produced by mudflats goes directly to feeding the many wading and other bird species which rely on them such as Brent Geese, Godwit and Plover species. Mudflats also have a vital role in storing carbon and processing excessive organic material, sewage and nitrate fertilisers in agricultural runoff, helping to improve the water quality in our stressed estuaries and the wider Solent."

Marine Specialist Tim Ferrero, Hants & Wight Wildlife Trust

The Solent Forum

Resources

Solent Habitats