Environmental Resilience - Woodland Ecosystems (Secondary Research)


 Woodland environments contain a huge diversity of habitats in which a variety of animals and plants can live. There is a full range of plant types; trees, shrubs, climbers, bulbs, grasses, mosses and lichens. Grazing animals maintain any open grassy areas. Areas that are unsuitable for tree growth due to rocks or water provide further habitats for other creatures and plants. (Fleming, 2020)

Woodlands are complex communities, all elements weave together to benefit the ecosystem as a whole. Each woodland are unique due to different species of flora, fauna and geography mixing in each of them (Natural Forest Practice, no date).

Individuals in the forest interacts with the ecosystem and therefore is constantly evolving, the weak die out and the strong develop new traits to keep up with the ever changing surroundings. Our intervention doesn't consider this, we grow specific trees for materials and put efforts into conserving particular species and their habitats. This kind of intervention isn't part of a self-sustaining ecosystem and can only be maintain by continued intervention. A healthy woodland ecosystem only contains the appropriate self-staining habitats. (Natural Forest Practice, no date).

These are all factors that make woodlands a resilient ecosystems, the ability to sustain only the necessary habitats and species, and the ability to constantly change and evolve. The only way humans can preserve these natural abilities is to have minimal interference. This can be done but gathering minimal resources from woodland areas and leaving the areas to self-sustain.

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