British NVC community MC10 (Festuca rubra - Plantago spp. maritime grassland) is one of the maritime cliff

Maritime cliff communities in the British National Vegetation Classification system

This article gives an overview of the maritime cliff communities in the British National Vegetation Classification system.-Introduction:The maritime cliff communities of the NVC were described in Volume 5 of British Plant Communities, first published in 2000, along with the other maritime...

 communities in the British National Vegetation Classification

British National Vegetation Classification

The British National Vegetation Classification or NVC is a system of classifying natural habitat types in Great Britain according to the vegetation they contain....

 system. It is one of five communities categorised as maritime sea-cliff grasslands.

This community is found widely in coastal areas. There are three subcommunities.

Community composition

Five constant species are found in this community:

• Red Fescue (Festuca rubra)
• Buck's-horn Plantain (Plantago coronopus)
• Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata)
• Sea Plantain (Plantago maritima)
• Creeping Bent
  Agrostis stolonifera
  Agrostis stolonifera is a perennial grass species in the Poaceae family. It is stoloniferous and may form mats or tufts...
  
   (Agrostis stolonifera)

Five rare species are associated with this community:

• Purple Milk-vetch (Astragalus danicus)
• Purple Oxytropis (Oxytropus halleri)
• Scottish Primrose (Primula scotica)
• Spring Squill (Scilla verna)
• Western Clover (Trifolium occidentale)

Distribution

This community is found in coastal areas on the west coast of Britain from Devon

Devon

Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...

 and Cornwall

Cornwall

Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...

 north to Shetland, with outlying examples in southeast Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 and 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...

.

Subcommunities

There are three subcommunities:

• the Armeria maritima subcommunity
• the Carex panicea subcommunity
• the Schoenus nigricans subcommunity