Selborne Field Guide by Category

Concept

Royal Forest — A legally defined area reserved for hunting, not necessarily wooded.

Heathland — An open habitat on acidic, sandy soils dominated by heather, gorse, and grasses.
Mire — Wet, often peaty areas within heathland supporting distinct plant communities.

Heath Cock — A heathland grouse once present in southern England, now locally extinct.
Red Deer — Large deer species central to the management and operations of the royal forest.

Fern — A widespread fern forming dense stands on heathland and open ground.
Goss (Furze) — A spiny, evergreen shrub with bright yellow flowers, historically used as fuel.
Grig — A dialect term for the rough grasses forming the ground layer of heathland.
Ling — The dominant shrub of lowland heathland, forming extensive purple carpets in late summer.

The Hanger — A steep, wooded hillside characteristic of the Selborne landscape.
Woolmer Forest — An extensive tract of lowland heath, historically a royal forest and central to White’s observations.

Hund. — A unit used by White to record rainfall in decimal fractions of an inch.

Brimstone Lodge — A second elevated site associated with the annual bower tradition.
Waldon Lodge — One of the elevated sites where annual bowers were constructed.

Bower — A structure made from branches, rebuilt annually as part of forest custom.
Burning Lime — The process of heating limestone to produce quicklime for agriculture and building.
Commoning — The system by which local people held rights to use common land for grazing and resources.
Controlled Burning — The seasonal burning of vegetation to manage heathland.
Furze Cutting — The cutting of gorse for use as fuel and other purposes.
Giving Law — The practice of allowing a deer a measured head start before pursuit or control.
Lime Kiln — A structure used to heat limestone to produce quicklime.
Peat — Organic material cut from boggy ground and used as fuel.
Stop-Dogs — Dogs trained to block, turn, and contain deer during drives.
Turf — Sections of surface vegetation cut and dried for use as fuel.
Yeoman Prickers — Mounted assistants responsible for driving and controlling deer in forest operations.