Geo-East The East Of England Geodiversity Partnership

The roots of our biodiversity lie in geodiversity, through its influence on soils, topography and hydrology, and hence habitat. The East of England has a rich variety of habitats, including salt marshes and mudflats, acidic heathland and calcareous grassland, valley fens and ancient woodland, sand dunes and beach shingle.

Bringing biodiversity and geodiversity together, the region's diverse natural heritage has been characterised through the Natural Areas concept, which has defined biogeographic zones with distinct associations of wildlife and natural features. Areas such as the Breckland, the Greater Thames Estuary and the West Anglian Plain have their own distinctive natural character - click here to find out more.

Some examples of links between geodiversity and wildlife


Mudflats develop in sheltered intertidal areas. They are biologically very productive, and attract feeding waders and gulls, as seen here in the Blyth estuary, Suffolk.	Saltmarshes are the upper, vegetated areas of mudflats, with plants that can tolerate periodic inundation by the sea. They are important bird breeding and feeding sites. Pictured here, the Deben estuary at Waldringfield, Suffolk	Shingle beaches develop in high energy coastal environments. Stabilised areas may be colonised by pioneer plants such as sea-kale, seen here at Thorpeness, Suffolk, and may be breeding sites for terns and gulls.


An intertidal chalk reef with large flints at Runton, Norfolk. This is a rare habitat in the region, and is rich in invertebrate species; most are found living under the boulders and cobbles on the reef surface.	The cliffs at Overstrand, Norfolk, are made of poorly consolidated glacial sediments prone to massive slumping. The mixture of open ground, friable soils and warm substrates favour rare beetle species at this site.	Sandy cliffs offer habitat for burrowing insects such as sand wasps, and also the nests of sand martins, as seen here at Easton Bavents cliff, Suffolk.


Downland turf has developed on rendzina soil at Warden Hill SSSI, near Luton, Beds. Chalk grassland plants found here include kidney vetch and common rock-rose, with hawthorn and buckthorn scrub.	Chalk is close to the surface beneath a veneer of sand at Weeting Heath SSSI, Norfolk. A chalk grassland has developed here over many centuries, with rare birds such as stone curlew breeding here.	Periglacial patterned ground at Barnham, Suffolk, showing alternating stripes of chalky and sandy soils. It produces distinct patterns of lime-loving and lime-hating plant species.


Foxley Wood SSSI, Norfolk, an example of ancient oak-hazel-ash woodland developed on chalky boulder clay soils. It has high biodiversity, with over 250 recorded plant species.	Birch woodland with gorse scrub at Wortham, Suffolk. This is the typical climax vegetation for lichen and heather heath, developed here on Pleistocene sands and gravels.	Beech woods are one of the features of the Chiltern Hills, seen here at Ashridge, Herts. They are growing here on superficial layers of clay-with-flints over chalk bedrock.


Ampthill Park, Bedfordshire. This is the largest area of acid grassland in the county, and is developed on sandy soils of the Cretaceous Upper Greensand.	Acidic heathland is developed on dry, well-draining sandy soils. Kelling Heath, Norfolk, has large areas of heather, silver birch and gorse, home to nightjar in summer and roosting hen harrier in winter.	Inland sand dunes at Wangford Warren SSSI, Suffolk. Bare sand is colonised by mosses and lichens and later grasses; rabbits help maintain the open ground.


Watercress at Fowlmere Fen SSSI, Cambs. Calcareous spring water emerges from the Chalk here, feeding an important wetland SSSI nature reserve and a chalk stream.	Houghton Regis Marl Lakes SSSI, Beds., are developed in a disused chalk quarry. This rare habitat type supports a flourishing flora of charophyte algae and a rich molluscan fauna.	Weston Fen SSSI, Suffolk, is fed by calcareous springs. The site is rich in fenland plants including fragrant orchid, marsh marigold and tussock sedge.


Marshes at Rockland St Mary, Norfolk, are underlain by peat and marine alluvium. Embankment of the River Yare allowed them to be drained and reclaimed. This is an important area for over-wintering wildfowl.	Wyboston Lakes, Beds, are flooded former gravel pits developed in terrace deposits of the Great Ouse valley. The site is a designated County Wildlife Site. Bream, pike, tench and zander are among the fish species here.	Water violet growing in a periglacial 'pingo' pond at Thompson Common SSSI, Norfolk. North European beetle species living here are thought to be a relict population from the last Ice Age.

For more information about habitat conservation see the UK Biodiversity Action Plan.