Marine Protected Area Habitats and Species Open Data (England)
This dataset collates marine habitat and species biotope records for England, compiled by Natural England from contracts it commissioned, data collected by Defra and associated bodies, and third-party data republished under the Open Government Licence. It comprises six sub-datasets (one point and five polygonal feature classes), provided as an ESRI File Geodatabase with an associated layer file. Two versions are available: one covering all publicly available marine habitat and species data held by Natural England, and a subset restricted to legally designated Marine Protected Areas. Geometry has been validated using ESRI methods but not OGC validation, so OGC compliance is not guaranteed. Contributing sources include universities, research institutes, and conservation organisations.This dataset contains a collation of marine habitat and species biotope records created during contracts commissioned by Natural England; collected by Defra and associated bodies/agencies; or provided by third parties that have allowed their data to be republished under the Open Government Licence (OGL). The datasets comprises six sub-datasets (feature classes): one point dataset and five polygonal. There are two versions of this dataset available for download: 'Marine Habitats and Species (Open)' and 'Marine Protected Areas Habitats and Species (Open)'. The dataset 'Marine Habitats and Species (Open)' represents all publicly available marine habitats and species (feature) data held by Natural England. The dataset 'Marine Protected Areas Habitats and Species (Open)' is a subset of the habitat and species data, which shows habitats and species data only within the site in which they are legally designated. Both datasets are provided as an ESRI File Geodatabase (GDB) with an ESRI structured layer file (LYR). All dataset geometry has been validated using the ESRI validation method. It has not been validated using the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) validation method and therefore may not comply with the OGC specification. These datasets are available under the Open Government Licence (OGL). Attribution statement: © Natural England, 2025 (see https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/0b512247-2f63-4615-abb7-62c154daca6e/marine-designated-site-features-open-data-england for full copyright statement); © A. Wheeler, 1952; © Agri-Food & Biosciences Institute, 2003; © B. Hepper, 1955; © Bangor University, 2012; © Blue Marine Foundation, 2018, 2020; © Bournemouth University, 2019; © British Petroleum, 1984; © C. Little, 1972, 1973, 1978; © Cemex UK Marine Ltd & Tarmac Marine Ltd, 2013, 2014; © Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, 1985, 1999; © Centre for Environment Fisheries & Aquaculture Science, 1979, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2012, 2014; © Centre for Environment,.
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