The Lizard Rarities Project

Coastal landscape near Kynance with rocks & thrift in the foreground and the sea in the background. — Coastal landscape near Kynance | © Ross Hoddinot

The Lizard Rarities Project is focussed on the recovery of rare species through the conservation of vital microhabitats found on the cliffs, coastal grasslands, and heathlands, such as bare rocks and shallow pools. In these often-overlooked places, creating the right conditions for tiny lichens, liverworts, and the smallest flowering plants, can be key to the ongoing survival of the whole landscape.

Over the past two years, the Lizard Rarities Project has been undertaking targeted action to create and restore habitats for 15 rare species across the Lizard. These include unique plants, bryophytes, and lichens, as well as the Grayling butterfly, which acts as an excellent barometer for the health of our coastal and heathland habitats.

Rare species

The Lizard is one of the most biodiverse areas in the country, with many species that are largely or wholly confined to the Lizard. It’s also wild and sparsely populated, with large areas of semi-natural heathland, grassland, and coastal habitat still intact. Today, much of this is in the care of the National Trust, Natural England, and Cornwall Wildlife Trust; the three main partners in the 2500ha Lizard National Nature Reserve (NNR).

Detailed surveys of the Lizard, dating back to the 1970s, provide a great baseline to assess change. Worryingly, many of the species that make the Lizard such a special place for nature appear to be facing functional extinction. Changes in land practice, the impacts of climate change, and the invasion of non-native species, have all led to a general decline in species richness, with important habitats becoming increasingly fragmented.

Over the course of the project, the National Trust, alongside their NNR partners, have been focussing on the targeted management of microhabitats that support a wide array of rare plants and animals. Whilst also ensuing that the quality of the habitats between these ‘hotspots’ is restored.

The project is funded by Natural England’s Species Recovery Programme Capital Grants Scheme (SRPCGS).

Lizard rare species

View of coastline, with clumps of heather and rocks in the foreground, and bright blue sea and clouds in the distance — The coast path in autumn, near Beagles Point on the Lizard | © National Trust Images/Ross Hoddinott

Cornish Heath

The unique geology of the Lizard has created some unusual soil conditions, which in turn support a diverse range of plant communities, often found nowhere else in Britain. Cornish Heath thrives on the magnesium-rich, but nutrient-poor, serpentine soils that dominate the southern half of the Lizard.

Wild asparagus, Lizard Cornwall — Wild asparagus growing on the Lizard, Cornwall | © National Trust Images/Ross Hoddinott

Wild (or Prostrate) Asparagus

Much of the Lizard’s coastline is dominated by steep slopes and tall rocky cliffs, particularly on the exposed west coast that faces the Atlantic head on. Here you will find plants that have taken to growing horizontally rather than vertically, like Prostrate Broom and Wild (or Prostrate) Asparagus.

Twin-headed Clover

The Lizard is the only place in the country where Twin-headed Clover can be found. This species favours south-facing slopes around rock outcrops where the vegetation is short and open. Due to habitat loss, the species has disappeared from 50% of its known locations over the last 40 years.

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Land management

With a mild climate and few frosts, non-native invasive species have taken hold in many areas. On the cliffs around Lizard Point, Hottentot-fig and Purple Dewplant form dense mats that smother native vegetation, including Lizard rarities such as Wild Asparagus and Upright Clover.

Over the last two summers, the Lizard Rarities Project has recruited the help of specialist climbers to clear vast areas of Hottentot-fig and Purple Dewplant from the Lizard cliffs.

Many of the key Lizard microhabitats (rock outcrops, coastal grassland slopes, former quarries) have disappeared under a blanket of scrub following a decline in grazing. To restore these habitats, and link them up, manual clearance of vegetation has been carried out by contractors, rangers, and volunteers.

The creation of new ponds, pools, and seasonally flooded scrapes has been carried out by contractors at various sites across the Lizard. Locations were chosen both for their suitability to hold water at desired times of the year, as well as their potential for colonisation by rarities such as Pygmy Rush.

Existing pools that had become overgrown or dry, have been carefully re-scraped so they hold water again. Elsewhere, the sites of former cart tracks have been scraped to recreate the deep ruts that once formed beneath horse and cart – amazingly, these sites can still hold viable seed from when they were last pools and puddles.

The serpentine rock on the Lizard is of national importance for its lichens, with some species only found on the Lizard. These species are at high risk due to scrub and ivy encroachment following a decrease in coastal grazing over recent decades. Targeted clearance of vegetation, combined with an increase in grazing, will help ensure these habitats survive.

Our work in pictures

Rangers brushcutting on the Lizard, Cornwall | © National Trust Images/Seth Jackson

Clearance of vegetation

Creating scrapes and pools on Lizard heathland | © National Trust Images Seth Jackson

Creating new ponds, pools, and seasonally flooded scrapes

Restoring an old trackway that will flood in winter and dry out in summer, providing the conditions needed for rarities such as Pygmy Rush | © National Trust Images Seth Jackson

Restoring former cart tracks

The sites of former cart tracks have been scraped to recreate the deep ruts that once formed beneath horse and cart – amazingly, these sites can still hold viable seed from when they were last pools and puddles.

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Conservation grazing

Conservation grazing is integral to the ongoing management of the Lizard habitats and their associated species. Traditional breed ponies and cattle already graze much of the Lizard NNR, and recent successful trials with fence-free cattle collars, and even goats, will help provide a sustainable, long-term means of managing these habitats at a landscape-scale.

You can read more detail about this project and other partnership work taking place across the Lizard by visiting the Natural Lizard partnership website.

Lizard partnership working