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Living things in the Harbour
People & the Environment
Land, water and air
Maps
Habitats
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Living things in the Harbour
Can you write a list of living things?
It would be a very long list if you wrote down the names of them all, so we divide them up or ‘classify’ them into groups. The main groups are animals, plants and micro-organisms. Micro-organisms are very tiny, you usually need a microscope to see them, so they are more difficult to put into groups.
Bank vole
A species is a plant, animal or micro-organism with similar characteristics that can interbreed. For a healthy world we need to keep a good variety of different species and habitats. This is called biodiversity.
A habitat is the natural place for animals and plants to live in. Follow the links below to find out about some of the plants and animals that live in Chichester Harbour and help to make it such a special place.
Plants can make food by using the energy in sunlight (photosynthesis). They are called producers. Animals cannot make food so they eat plants or other animals. They are called consumers.
A food chain usually starts with a plant or producer that is then eaten by a consumer.
Animals can be divided into two main groups, animals without backbones (invertebrates) and animals with backbones (vertebrates). One group of vertebrates that you will see in the harbour is birds.
Biodiversity
A habitat is the physical place where a group or community of living things (plants and animals etc.) lives.
A simple ecosystem is a habitat and its community of organisms. Most ecosystems are made up of many habitats and communities. A simple ecosystem could be a rotting log in a bigger ecosystem called a forest.
Biodiversity is the amazing variety of the living world, hundreds and thousands of different species, communities, habitats, and ecosystems. To see some of the amazing life under the sea, look at our marine life video on YouTube.
Seal | Photograph: Chris Cockburn
There is a multitude of different species (from seabirds to sunflowers, from sea anemones to seals, from shellfish to sycamore trees), but biodiversity is also about having a variety within the species. This is called genetic diversity.
Biodiversity is important because loss of biodiversity reduces an ecosystem's ability to recover from natural or man-made disruption. Our own survival as a species may depend on maintaining a high level of biodiversity and living and behaving in a sustainable way.
Many species are becoming very rare (like the Water Vole) or extinct (the Mouse-Eared Bat). Others that were once common, like the House Sparrow are declining in number, so much so that they are now on the ‘Red List’ of species needing urgent action to help them survive. (For more information look on the RSPB website – see useful links)
As well as identifying and ‘designating’ special areas, there are also Biodiversity Action Plans (BAPs) for the United Kingdom, concerned with species, habitats or local areas. The English Nature website has lots of information about these (see useful links). Chichester Harbour has its own BAP (Biodiversity Action Plan) that was drawn up in 1999 and is currently being revised. Check the wildlife section of the main harbour site to download the current plan.
Chichester Harbour as a special place
It is special because of:
- the wide range of habitats: both intertidal (the space between high and low tide level) and terrestrial (land) habitats
- internationally important numbers of waterbirds
- nationally important species of flora and fauna
The harbour has been recognised as special for its habitats and wildlife by being ‘designated’ as:
- a Ramsar site - that means it is a wetland of international importance (important compared with other countries in the world)
- an SSSI – a Site of Special Scientific Interest
- an SPA – a Special Protection Area
- and some areas are Local Nature Reserves.
These designations (with others) help to protect the harbour environment. Learn more about harbour designations.
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