This document explores environmental and ecological data acquired from a drop-down camera survey of Lizard Point SAC (Special Area of Conservation) in 2017. This report will inform a later condition assessment and management activities for this site. The report compares the features of the SAC in 2017 with those recorded in previous surveys.
Lizard Point SAC is an inshore site at the most southerly point of mainland Great Britain. The site is characterised by rock cliffs interspersed with sandy coves. Coastal and offshore habitats are comprised of bedrock and boulders with areas overlain with mobile sediments. Within Lizard Point SAC, Annex I reef features and infralittoral and circalittoral rock subfeatures are designated for protection.
The majority of imagery data gathered in 2017 were assigned to circalittoral rock habitats, with infralittoral rock and subtidal sediments also recorded. Annex I reef habitats were identified in over half of the images captured in 2017 and these were widespread throughout the SAC. There was no indication that the extents of these features had changed in comparison with previous years data.
The biotopes and associated taxa recorded in the 2017 survey were typically at a relatively coarse resolution in comparison to historic data. Despite this, there was no evidence that there had been significant changes in the biotopes, notable species or ecological function and structure within the SAC.
A number of recommendations for future surveying, interpretation and assessment of the SAC are provided. These include aiming to maximise the resolution at which habitats and species are recorded, bespoke surveys aimed at quantifying the extents of designated features and subfeatures and the identification of key structural and functional taxa in future monitoring.