The Good Archive - Species Information

Species information

(It is important to mention that Good's survey was designed to give a reliable and quantitative estimation of the comparative frequency of each species across Dorset. This meant using a methodolgy which gave a fair representation of all of the habitats within Dorset and thus being unbiased in the recording of species which are typically more often looked for and recorded by the field botanist.)

Species Information

The distribution of Small-flowered Catchfly
(Silene gallica) in 1939
(click on the map for larger picture)

The distribution of Small-flowered Catchfly
(Silene gallica) Post 1980

(click on the map for larger picture)

In total, almost 1100 species were recorded during the survey and each of these has its distribution mapped and directly available for comparison with other or present data on the distribution of that species.

The map shows the distribution of Small-flowered Catchfly (Silene gallica) in the 1930's, a species described by Good as casual and found in 61 of the stands. It now can only be found in a handful sites within the county. The fact that Good was not rigorous in his search for this species indicates that its decline has been drastic. A similar rate of decline is apparent for many other species of arable weed.

The current distribution of Indian Balsam
(Impatiens glandulifera)
(click on the picture for a closer view)

In contrast, some species have increased rapidly. For example, Good recorded Indian Balsam (Impatiens glandulifera) from one site at Oxbridge in 1935 and now this aggressive coloniser of riverbanks can be found throughout much of Dorset.