Activity 5.3 - Succession Click here to play the interactive tutorial on succession. Click the next button to view the ‘Succession on coal mining spoil heaps’ task.

Succession on coal mining spoil heaps This Powerpoint activity allows you to view the regeneration of plant cover on three spoil heaps of different ages. The spoil heaps are in Pwlldu near Abergavenny. http://www.panoramio.com/photo/4132571

Task Your task is to analyse the abiotic and biotic data on the three coal mining spoil heaps of different ages. You will then summarise the differences, and describe the changes as succession takes place. Click the information button for more detailed information about the task.

A B C This map shows 3 spoil heaps at Pwlldu (A, B and C). The waste was dumped at different times in the past, and the age of each is shown in the key. Click on a thumbnail at the top of the screen to see more detail of the area.

Click Home to return to this page. Soil data Click on each of the spoil heaps (A, B, C) in turn to analyse the area in detail. Click on the information button to get full instructions. Click Home to return to this page. Data entry A B C Click on the data entry button to enter data into a spreadsheet. Click on the soil data button to see the abiotic data.

32 years old Quadrat 1 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails 32 years old Quadrat 1

32 years old Quadrat 2 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails 32 years old Quadrat 2

32 years old Quadrat 3 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

32 years old Quadrat 4 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

32 years old Quadrat 5 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

60 years old Quadrat 1 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

60 years old Quadrat 2 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

60 years old Quadrat 3 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

60 years old Quadrat 4 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

60 years old Quadrat 5 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

145 years old Quadrat 1 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

145 years old Quadrat 2 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

145 years old Quadrat 3 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

145 years old Quadrat 4 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

145 years old Quadrat 5 Soil data Data entry Key to species Click on thumbnails

Click Esc to enter data Sampling Site Soil data Species Sheep's fescue   Sampling Site A B C A (32 years) B (60 years) C (145 years) 1 2 3 4 5 Species Sheep's fescue Heather Cross-leaved heath Spagnum moss Soft Rush Reindeer Moss Bilberry

Soil data Sheep’s fescue Data entry

Soil data Heather Data entry

Soil data Cross-leaved heath Data entry

Soil data Sphagnum Data entry

Soil data Soft rush Data entry

Soil data Reindeer moss Data entry

Bilberry without leaves Soil data Bilberry without leaves Data entry

Soil data Bilberry with leaves Data entry

Instructions Soil data Use the 5 quadrats at each spoil tip site to make estimates of percentage cover of each plant, of plant cover in general, and ‘bare ground’. Record your results for percentage cover on the downloadable spreadsheet, or on the slide provided in this presentation. Finally, by clicking on the soil data button you can see some information about the soils on each tip. Use the combined information, this presentation and any additional slides with text and visuals (e.g. graphs and diagrams) you wish to create to summarise the changes to vegetation on the soil tips over time. Your presentation should answer the question ‘What are the likely changes and timeline for natural restoration of coal mining spoil tips?’ Data entry

Soil data A B C Data entry Site A B C Age (years) 32 60 145 pH 6 5 Soil water content dish (g) 134 176 dish plus soil (g) 324 318 262 soil wet (g) 190 184 86 dish plus soil dry (g) 302 286 213 soil dry (g) 168 152 37 water loss (g) 22 49 % water content 13 19 29 Soil organic content crucible (g) 9.44 9.32 10 crucible plus soil dry (g) 12.69 10.94 11.73 soil (g) 3.25 1.62 1.73 crucible plus ash (g) 12.35 11.35 humus (g) 0.34 0.38 % organic content 10.46 23.46 21.97 A B C