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The
above code was published in 1999 by the Botanical Society
of the British Isles. The main points relating to pteridophytes
are outlined here. Members and others are urged to follow
these guidelines. Although the information provided here relates
only to the British Isles, similar legislation exists abroad.
Members and others are urged to follow the same standards
abroad as they do at home, and always to act within local
legislation.
A
WWW version of the full text has been prepared by the
BPS. It contains the original text with some re-formatting
for the web. Note that some addresses of organisations may
not be up to date.
Paper
copies of the original are available from the BSBI at The
Natural History Museum. An MS
Word version of the original can be downloaded from here.
Legal
protection
All
wild plants are protected by law in the United Kingdom. Under
the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, it is illegal to uproot
any plant without permission from the landowner or occupier.
Similar protection is given to plants in Northern Ireland
under the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order, 1985. Furthermore,
many nature reserves, including National Trust land, have
bylaws in force making it illegal to pick, uproot of remove
plants. Several of our rarest plants are specifically protected
under Schedule 8 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act against
intentional picking, uprooting and destruction, unless damage
is a result of a lawful activity and could not reasonably
have been avoided.
The
pteridophytes listed on Schedule 8 are: Cystopteris dickieana,
Equisetum ramosissimum, Ophioglossum lusitanicum,
Trichomanes speciosum (including its gametophytic form),
Woodsia alpina and W. ilvensis. In Northern
Ireland Gymnocarpium dryopteris, Lycopodiella inundata,
Pilularia globulifera, Polystichum lonchitis
and Trichomanes speciosum are similarly protected.
In the Republic of Ireland the following pteridophytes are
specifically listed: Asplenium obovatum, A. septentrionale,
Cryptogramma crispa, Gymnocarpium robertianum,
Pitularia globulifera and Trichomanes speciosum.
Responsible
conduct
Collecting
small amounts of plant material for private study, research
or as voucher specimens is usually acceptable, except in the
case of protected or rare species. However, no collecting
of any plant material should be-undertaken on a nature reserve
or protected site without first obtaining permission, and
in no circumstances should the bulk of a population be collected.
Habitat
conservation
Rare
plants are often rare because they require specific conditions,
and unintentional damage to their habitats can easily occur.
A particular threat is soil compaction. Should you visit a
rare plant, please avoid doing anything which will alter the
site conditions, such as disturbing the surrounding vegetation
for photographic purposes, or excessive trampling of surrounding
vegetation.
Introducing
plants to the wild
It
is an offence to introduce certain plant species into the
wild. However, none of the listed species are fems. Nevertheless,
non-native plants should never be introduced into the wild,
and one fem, Azolla, is now becoming a pest on some
nature reserves in SE England.
Rob Cooke
BPS
Conservation Officer
The
full text is available here.
This page is based on an article originally published in
the BPS Bulletin, 1999.
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