Bamburgh Dunes are a region of coastal sand

Sand

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...

 dune

Dune

In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...

s with an area of over 40 hectares situated around the village of Bamburgh

Bamburgh

Bamburgh is a large village and civil parish on the coast of Northumberland, England. It has a population of 454.It is notable for two reasons: the imposing Bamburgh Castle, overlooking the beach, seat of the former Kings of Northumbria, and at present owned by the Armstrong family ; and its...

 in Northumberland

Northumberland

Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...

, England. The dunes, which stand in the shadow of the impressive Bamburgh Castle

Bamburgh Castle

Bamburgh Castle is an imposing castle located on the coast at Bamburgh in Northumberland, England. It is a Grade I listed building.-History:...

, have been a Site of Special Scientific Interest

Site of Special Scientific Interest

A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...

 (SSSI) since 1995 and are part of the North Northumberland Dunes Special Area of Conservation

Special Area of Conservation

A Special Area of Conservation is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive , also known as the Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora...

 (SAC). The dunes have a rich diversity of flora and fauna and in places provide good examples of “climbing dunes” found where sand has been blown onto high ground adjacent to the beach.

Bamburgh Dunes vary from open sandy beaches, through low ridges dominated by Marram grass, to more stable grass-covered dunes. These occur as a series of irregular parallel sand ridges and hummocks separated by hollows, which are seasonally wet. Some of the plant species include the Pyramidal orchid

Pyramidal orchid

The Pyramidal Orchid, Anacamptis pyramidalis, is an herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the Genus Anacamptis of the family Orchidaceae...

, Centaurium

Centaurium

Centaurium is a genus of 20 species in the gentian family , tribe Chironieae, subtribe Chironiinae. The genus was named after the centaur Chiron, famed in Greek mythology for his skill in medicinal herbs...

, sea sandwort and petalwort (which is on the List of endangered species in the British Isles) . The dunes are also rich in rare insect life, over 500 species have been identified including 15 rare species including a plant hopper (Dicranotropis divergens) a grass-mining fly (Opomyza punctata), and a shore fly (Psilopa marginella). Birds attracted to the dunes include Grasshopper Warbler

Grasshopper Warbler

The Grasshopper Warbler, Locustella naevia, is an Old World warbler in the grass warbler genus Locustella. It breeds across much of temperate Europe and Asia. It is migratory, wintering from northwest Africa to India....

, Sedge Warbler

Sedge Warbler

The Sedge Warbler is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It is a medium-sized warbler with a brown, streaked back and wings and a distinct pale supercilium. Sedge Warblers are migratory, crossing the Sahara to get from their European and Asian breeding grounds to spend winter in Africa...

, European Stonechat

European Stonechat

The European Stonechat is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a subspecies of the Common Stonechat. Long considered a member of the thrush family Turdidae, genetic evidence has placed it and its relatives in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae.It is 11.5–13 cm long and...

, Meadow Pipit

Meadow Pipit

The Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis, is a small passerine bird which breeds in much of the northern half of Europe and also northwestern Asia, from southeastern Greenland and Iceland east to just east of the Ural Mountains in Russia, and south to central France and Romania; there is also an isolated...

 and Reed Bunting

Reed Bunting

The Reed Bunting, Emberiza schoeniclus, is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae....

. In winter Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl

The Short-eared Owl is a species of typical owl . In Scotland this species of owl is often referred to as a cataface, grass owl or short-horned hootlet. Owls belonging to genus Asio are known as the eared owls, as they have tufts of feathers resembling mammalian ears. These "ear" tufts may or may...

 and Water Rail

Water Rail

The Water Rail is a bird of the rail family which breeds in well-vegetated wetlands across Europe, Asia and North Africa. Northern and eastern populations are migratory, but this species is a permanent resident in the warmer parts of its breeding range...

 are also found.

Over the years more vigorous invasive plant species and scrub have encroached, making the dune system too stabilised and threatening the uniqueness of Bamburgh Dunes, most rare plant species appreciate the unstable and shifting structure of sand dunes. In an effort to counteract this, Bamburgh Castle Estate, English Nature

English Nature

English Nature was the United Kingdom government agency that promoted the conservation of wildlife, geology and wild places throughout England between 1990 and 2006...

, DEFRA

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom...

, Northumberland County Council and Bamburgh Parish Council have come up with a plan of management which has resulted in cattle being allowed to graze the dunes since 2000 to break up the dominant grass cover. A fence has been erected to contain the cattle within the dunes, access by people is encouraged within the fenced area with stiles and gates sited on the main paths.
An ancient Anglo-Saxon

Anglo-Saxons

Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...

 7th century burial ground was unearthed in the dunes to the south east of Bamburgh Castle during an archaeological dig in 1998 by the Bamburgh Research Project. The burial ground, called the Bowl Hole, had been known to exist since 1816 when violent storms removed large amounts of dune sand and uncovered the site for a period. The BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 television programme “Meet the Ancestors

Meet the Ancestors

Meet the Ancestors aka Ancestors was a BBC Television documentary series that documents the archaeological excavation and scientific reconstruction of human remains.-Series one :-Series two :...

” became involved during the dig and screened a programme about the finds in February 2001.