National Character Area 148 - Devon Redlands : Key Characteristics

Hilly landscape of villages, hamlets, farmsteads, hedgebanks and winding sunken lanes, rising in height towards the fringes of the NCA. Steep-sided but flat-bottomed river valleys cut through the hills, opening onto wide flood plains which are important for wintering wildfowl nearer the coast.

Red soils derived from the Permo-Triassic sandstone and red-tinged cob buildings give the name to this NCA.

Large woodlands confined mainly to steep valley sides. In upper valleys small, broadleaved woodlands and copses give a strong sense of enclosure and provide valuable habitat for wildlife. There is a high concentration of ancient semi-natural woodland in the northern part of the NCA.

Mixed farming predominates, but as the land rises in the transitional areas towards Dartmoor and Exmoor pasture becomes widespread. Fields tend to be small and irregular with dense hedgerows on top of earthbanks in the transitional areas, while there is a larger, more open field pattern elsewhere.

A high frequency of designed landscapes.

Cob, red sandstone and thatch buildings are distinctive of the area.

Distinctive area of the East Devon Pebblebed Heaths on infertile, acidic soils supporting important populations of birds such as the hobby, nightjar and Dartford warbler, and butterflies such as the studded blue. The area is also nationally important for relict prehistoric landscapes and features.

Estuaries with reedbeds and salt and grazing marshes.

Striking red sandstone cliffs with well-developed wave-cut platforms and stacks.

Significant urban development around the estuaries and along the coast. The motorway and trunk road network linking Devon and Cornwall with the rest of the country cuts through the landscape, exposing the red sandstone. It converges around Exeter, a historic city and now a key regional centre.

The Haldon Ridge, a coniferous plantation with remnant heath, forms a landscape setting for Exeter and the settlements around the Exe.