Alluvial floodplain woodland is a wonderfully dynamic habitat of exceptional importance for wildlife. Chris Dyson describes the ecology of this rare habitat with a focus on the native Black Poplar, and explores the prospect of re-establishing alluvial woodland in its former range in south-east Wales.
The low-lying areas of land along rivers are naturally fertile and so have been a focus for agricultural activity over thousands of years. In Britain, this, as well as their use for timber and firewood, has resulted in the almost complete removal of the ecologically distinct and highly productive woodland communities of flood-plains.